The High Court has dismissed a professional negligence case brought by Henry Mannion against solicitors who represented him in family law proceedings, after finding that the action had remained dormant for an unjustifiable period.
The defendants, David Bergin, Mark M. Bergin and Catherin Bradley, practising as O’Connor and Bergin Solicitors, had acted for Mannion in judicial separation proceedings heard on 12 February 1997.
Mannion issued negligence proceedings against them in May 1999. A statement of claim followed in April 2000 and a defence was served in May 2001. Discovery was pursued later that year. After Mannion promised a further response in May 2003, however, no further action occurred until March 2008, when his side again sought voluntary discovery.
The defendants applied in July 2008 to have the case dismissed for inordinate and inexcusable delay and want of prosecution.
Mannion argued that his family law proceedings had continued until 2004 and occupied his attention. He also said that he had difficulty finding a solicitor willing to give expert evidence about the professional standards applicable in family law cases. The court rejected those explanations.
Mr Justice Hedigan applied the established two-stage test. First, he found the delay inordinate and inexcusable. Second, he considered whether the balance of justice nevertheless favoured allowing the claim to proceed.
The judge concluded that it did not. The allegations concerned what instructions had been given and how litigation had been conducted in 1997, matters which would be difficult to reconstruct more than 12 years later. The proceedings also directly questioned the defendants’ professional conduct.
The court additionally considered their right under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights to have civil proceedings determined within a reasonable time. Allowing the action to continue after such prolonged inactivity would, the judge held, weigh heavily against continuation.
The proceedings were therefore dismissed for inordinate and inexcusable delay.