Courts / Kerry / Report

Michael O'Leary takes to stand in Ryanair contract case

Date
2019-12-03

Stage
Hearing Or Decision

Primary locality
Killarney

County
Kerry

Summary

In a High Court hearing on 3 December 2019, Ryanair's chief operations officer Peter Bellew faced a claim from the airline that his employment contract contained a 12‑month non‑compete clause preventing him from working for a rival after leaving. Bellew, who had agreed to become chief operating officer at EasyJet, denied breaching the contract and argued the clause was unenforceable because he was not included in Ryanair's share‑option scheme, which he said was a precondition for the clause. Ryanair's CEO Michael O'Leary testified that senior managers, known as "Zs", are bound by such clauses, receive share options, and have access to commercially sensitive information. O'Leary also highlighted Bellew's role in flight operations, engineering, and pilot training, and his salary of €550,000 plus a potential €500,000 bonus. The case, heard before Mr Justice Senan Allen, seeks an injunction to enforce the non‑compete and prevent Bellew from acting contrary to the post‑termination restrictions.