Helen Guiney loses statutory argument over Insurance Compensation Fund claim

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

The High Court found against Helen Guiney on statutory interpretation in her Insurance Compensation Fund case, leaving potential European Union law arguments unresolved. Mr. Justice Gerard Hogan delivered the judgment on 22 September 2014.

Her husband, John Guiney, was killed on a construction site in November 2000. On 17 July 2012, Irvine J. awarded her €794,795, together with costs, against MJ Manning Construction Co. Ltd. The company was no longer trading and could not satisfy the judgment.

Its insurer, Independent Insurance Company Ltd., was also in liquidation. Its directors petitioned the High Court of England and Wales for its winding-up on 17 June 2001. Information from the provisional liquidators suggested she was unlikely to recover more than perhaps 10–15% of her award. The judgment also said she could not claim under the UK Financial Services Compensation Scheme because the death occurred in Ireland.

The Accountant refused her application for compensation from the Irish fund by a decision dated 20 May 2013, having received legal advice that it fell outside the Insurance Act 1964. She sought a declaration that she was entitled to have the Accountant apply to the President of the High Court for approval of a payment.

The judge held that the pre-2011 scheme required authorisation from the Minister or Central Bank and winding-up proceedings in the Irish High Court. The insurer met neither condition. The 2011 extension to foreign insurers operated prospectively. Having decided the statutory issue against her, the judge invited the parties to consider EU-law arguments as quickly as possible.