Court archive
Court reports mentioning Liscannor, Clare
2025-11-13 · Dublin
Reece O'Brien, aged 23, pleaded guilty to money laundering and having the proceeds of crime, and was sentenced to two years and six months' imprisonment, with the final 12 months suspended for two years on strict conditions. He was found to have €5,595 in cash, cannabis, weighing scales, bagging equipment, a Volkswagen Golf, high‑value clothing and a PlayStation 5 in his apartment, all seized during a Garda search. O'Brien also spat at a Garda and threatened to "bite their faces off and kill them." Stephanie Boylan, aged 24, pleaded guilty to money laundering and received an 18‑month sentence, suspended for three years on strict conditions. Boylan had no prior convictions and was found to have paid for the car with cash from the proceeds of crime. Both defendants' pleas and youth were considered by Judge Orla Crowe.
2024-04-22 · Meath
The High Court approved a Personal Insolvency Arrangement for Thomas and Valerie Johnson, a couple from Co Meath, allowing them to write off over €2.65 million in debt mainly owed to financial funds. The arrangement, lasting 12 months, lets the couple keep their family home at Liscannor Lodge, Drumree Road, Dunshaughlin. Their mortgage will be restructured with a €200,000 lump‑sum payment, and they will pay €1,500 toward unsecured debts. The court, presided over by Mr Justice Alexander Owens, approved the application submitted by Keith Farry BL on behalf of the couple's insolvency practitioner.
2022-02-02 · Clare
In a High Court case, Davy Spillane, a celebrated Irish musician, announced that the proceedings against his former record label, Tara Enterprises Ltd and its subsidiary Tara Music Company Limited, had been amicably resolved. Spillane had sued the companies and their Managing Director, John Cook, alleging breach of contract, misrepresentation and underpayment of royalty fees. He claimed that the label failed to provide adequate accounting information and that he was not receiving all payments due to him. Universal Musical Ireland, which acquired Tara's catalogue in 2019, was added as a defendant. The court granted orders for the settlement, including the striking out of the proceedings and an order that Universal Music Ireland pay Spillane's legal costs. The judge welcomed the settlement and noted that it would have otherwise taken several weeks to hear. The parties agreed that the settlement was confidential and amicable. The case was concluded without further hearing.
2021-11-05 · Ireland
In 2018, Diamrem Ltd lost a High Court challenge to close a temporary carpark operated by Clare County Council across the road from the Cliffs of Moher visitors centre. Diamrem sought Section 160 planning injunctions to prohibit the use of the carpark and require its removal to enable a park‑and‑ride service. The company argued the carpark was an unauthorised development and that the council had failed to comply with conditions attached to the planning permission for the centre. The council and its subsidiary denied this, stating the original proposed carpark was never built and the existing one was approved as a Part 8 development. Justice Mary Faherty dismissed the action, citing the applicant's failure to commence the Section 160 proceedings within the statutory time period. The Court of Appeal, led by Justice Seamus Woulfe, upheld the dismissal, noting the time‑period issue was dispositive and that other matters should be left for a separate case.
2018-03-14 · Dublin
A 22‑year‑old Dublin man, Karl Proudfoot, was sentenced to four and a half years in prison for a series of violent offences. He pleaded guilty to slashing a drug addict on the back of the head with a Stanley knife on Arran Street East on 16 June 2017, an act captured on CCTV that showed him striking the victim "out of the blue." Proudfoot also admitted to two phone‑robberies: one at Fingal Place on 17 June 2017, where he left the victim with a nasal fracture and facial bruising, and another at Phoenix Park on 24 June 2017, where he beat a Moldovan woman and stole her phone. The court noted the assaults were "extremely nasty and senseless" and that Proudfoot had never been in custody before. Judge Martin Nolan, after considering the young man's age, remorse and lack of prior convictions, imposed the sentence, warning it could have been longer without those mitigating factors.
2016-05-05 · Clare
A 41‑year‑old man, Declan O'Cualain, was found not guilty by reason of insanity for strangling his brother Adrian Folan with a bungee cord on 4 July 2014. In the Central Criminal Court, the prosecution argued that O'Cualain was fixated on paedophilia and believed his brother had abused him, but two forensic psychiatrists testified that he was in a delusional state and should not be held responsible. The jury returned a not‑guilty verdict after 21 minutes of deliberation. Judge Margaret Heneghan ordered O'Cualain to be committed to the Central Mental Hospital (CMH). Dr Sally Linehan, a consultant forensic psychiatrist, reported that O'Cualain had been admitted to the CMH in December 2014, was under her care since February 2015, and had improved insight into his bipolar disorder. She confirmed he was receiving antipsychotic and mood‑stabilising medication and had responded well to treatment. The judge, satisfied with the psychiatric evidence, committed him to the CMH for inpatient care.
2016-04-22 · Galway
A 41‑year‑old Declan O'Cualain was found not guilty by reason of insanity for strangling his brother Adrian Folan with a bungee cord on 4 July 2014. O'Cualain, who lived in An Caoran Beag, An Cheathru Rua, Co Galway, was charged with murder after the body was discovered concealed under rocks near the Cliffs of Moher, Co Clare. He pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, and after 21 minutes of deliberation a jury of nine men and three women returned that verdict. The judge, Justice Margaret Heneghan, exempted the jury from further service for 15 years and ordered O'Cualain to be committed to the Central Mental Hospital. The court heard forensic psychiatrists confirmed he was in an acute manic psychosis state, unable to appreciate the nature of his actions. The case was heard at the Central Criminal Court on 22 April 2016.
2016-04-21 · Galway
A 41‑year‑old Galway man, Declan O'Cualain, was charged with murdering his brother Adrian Folan. The prosecution alleged that O'Cualain strangled Folan with a bungee cord, then disposed of the body in a water‑filled pit near the Cliffs of Moher, covering it with rocks. He confessed to the act to a friend and to Gardaí, and was arrested at his home on 7 July 2014. Gardaí found the body, which was later identified at Limerick University Hospital, and evidence of a burnt knife fragment and bungee cords was recovered. O'Cualain pleaded not guilty on the grounds of insanity, claiming he was in an "utterly delusional" state and believed his brother was a paedophile. The trial is ongoing.
2016-04-18 · Clare
A 41‑year‑old man, Declan O'Cualain of An Caoran Beag, An Cheathru Rua, Co Galway, pleaded not guilty to the murder of his brother, Adrian Folan (O'Cualain), at Lislorkin North, Liscannor, Co Clare, on 4 July 2014. The plea was made at the Central Criminal Court. Judge Patrick McCarthy informed a jury of nine men and three women that the case would last no more than a day, but they would be required to serve until the end of the week. He added that the matter would be handled by Ms Justice Heneghan.