The Court of Appeal set aside a €72,615 default judgment against Martin Murray after finding it could not be satisfied that a notice of intention to proceed had been properly served at the address stated in a substituted service order.
Corrib Oil Company Limited had brought proceedings in 2009, claiming Murray failed to pay for fuel oil supplied to him. A default judgment was entered in September 2011. Murray applied to have it set aside, saying he had not received the relevant notices. The High Court refused his application in February 2016, and he appealed.
The substituted service order, made in May 2011, permitted the notice to be sent by ordinary prepaid post to “Crimblin, Moneygall, Co. Offaly”. Murray said his correct address was “Crimlin Little, Moneygall, Co. Tipperary”. The judgment records that Corrib did not really dispute that the address in the order was incorrect. A registered notice sent earlier had been returned marked “not called for”.
Delivering judgment on behalf of the Court of Appeal, Mr Justice Gerard Hogan said the decisive issue was whether the 2011 notice had been validly served. Because Corrib had waited more than a year before taking another step in the proceedings, the rules required a notice of intention to proceed. The validity of the later default judgment therefore depended on adequate service of that notice under the substituted service order.
The High Court judge had considered whether Murray was personally served with the original proceedings in 2009. The appeal court said it was unnecessary to resolve that disputed question. It also found the High Court had erred in choosing between conflicting affidavit accounts about personal service without cross-examination.
The Court identified two address errors: “Crimblin” instead of “Crimlin Little”, and County Offaly instead of County Tipperary. It said courts require a high degree of accuracy in service addresses and excuse errors only where they are shown to be harmless and unlikely to mislead. Given the two errors, the returned notice and Murray’s account that he had not known of the proceedings until 2014, the court could not be sufficiently assured that service was effective.
The appeal was allowed and the default judgment set aside. The court did not determine the merits of Corrib’s fuel oil claim, or require the High Court to resolve further service questions. It ordered Murray to file a replying affidavit to the original proceedings within four weeks. Corrib may then take further steps to seek judgment afresh.