The High Court ruled that Ticket Generator Limited must provide security for costs to Ryanair equal to one-third of the estimated costs, following an earlier decision that the company would probably be unable to pay Ryanair’s costs if it won the proceedings.
Miss Justice Laffoy delivered the judgment on 24 May 2012. It addressed only how much security should be provided under an order already indicated in favour of the second defendant, Ryanair Limited. The judgment did not determine the underlying proceedings or whether Ryanair would succeed in defending them.
The court considered whether the usual one-third practice should apply even though the plaintiff was a company incorporated outside Ireland. The plaintiff submitted that the Supreme Court’s decision in Framus Ltd v CRH Plc bound the High Court to follow that practice. Ryanair argued that Framus concerned security under a different rule and was not in point.
Laffoy J concluded, with “a considerable degree of diffidence”, that the court was bound by the approach in Thalle v Soares as explained in Framus. Under that approach, one-third of estimated costs is the customary measure, though special circumstances may justify a different amount. She found no such circumstances in this case and directed that the one-third practice apply.
The judgment considered earlier decisions addressing security under different provisions, including a decision involving a company incorporated in the Caribbean region. It distinguished the rules-based approach from the statutory provision for companies incorporated in Ireland, which refers to “sufficient security”. The court noted that the law contained anomalies and referred to a proposed reform that would remove that wording.
The decision fixes the amount of security under the previously indicated order. It does not state the precise euro amount ordered in this judgment.