The whereabouts of a Dublin solicitor whose practice has been closed by the Law Society were unknown today, as the High Court heard of concerns over his financial dealings in relation to a number of properties.
IIB Bank plc claimed today that Thomas A Byrne, who has a practice Walkinstown Road, Dublin 12, secured a €9 million loan from it on a number of properties which in fact were the subject of a prior mortgages with other banks, which include Bank of Scotland Ireland, which was represented in court today, ICS Building Society, Anglo Irish Bank, Bank of Ireland and Ulster Bank Ltd.
Mr Byrne had been informed by the Law Society on Friday October 19th that it would be carrying out an audit of his practice last Monday but he failed to turn up at his office that day, the court heard.
His practice is the second to be shut down in the last 10 days. Mr Byrne was not legally represented today when IIB succeeded in an application to continue freezing orders against him.
IIB also secured an order directing National Irish Bank to discover by Tuesday next all documents relating to accounts held by Mr Byrne or associated companies.
The loan in question was secured on 16 residential properties and three non-residential properties.
On Monday, IIB secured an interim order against Mr Byrne restraining him from reducing his assets below €9 million and also freezing bank accounts in his name. A notice from the Law Society on the door of the solicitor's offices in Walkinstown on Monday stated the practice was now closed. Mr Byrne also has an office in Sandyford Industrial Estate.
The Law Society yesterday initiated proceedings against Mr Byrne, also on an ex-parte basis. However, on the application of the Society, those proceedings were heard in private.
Mr Byrne was found guilty of misconduct by the Law Society in December 2006 for allowing a deficit of €1,696,969 on the client account as of May 31st, 2005 and for allowing personal transactions of his own to be drawn from the client bank account.
He was censured and ordered to pay a sum of €15,000 to the Society's Compensation Fund, the maximum amount which may be imposed.