The High Court entered judgment for Kathleen Moohan and John Bradley trading as Bradley Construction on their €233,098.34 claim against S. & R. Motors (Donegal) Limited. Mr Justice Clarke ordered that execution of any amount above €100,000 be stayed pending arbitration of the motor company’s claims about defective construction, or further court order.
The dispute arose from a contract dated 24 June 2004 for construction of a Volkswagen showroom at Drumlonagher in Donegal town. Bradley Construction sought payment based on architects’ certificates 11 and 12, together with interest and retention monies. S. & R. Motors alleged that the showroom floor was uneven and defective and sought to set that claim against the certified sums.
The Master had entered judgment for Bradley Construction after the motor company did not provide effective opposition evidence. S. & R. Motors appealed and sought a stay so the dispute could go to arbitration. Clarke found the Master should have adjourned the judgment motion because the stay application was already pending and the company said filing evidence in response could undermine its right to seek arbitration. The judge heard both matters together.
Clarke accepted that the contract did not exclude, in the circumstances of this case, an equitable set-off for a cross-claim arising from the same contract. But he found S. & R. Motors had not established a defence to the certified claim: it had made no reasonable, timely effort to quantify or pursue the defective-floor claim through arbitration. Although the company had raised the issue earlier, it only tried to set out a claim capable of meeting or extinguishing the builders’ demand shortly before the hearing.
The judge nevertheless found a prima facie cross-claim and considered whether enforcement of the judgment should be stayed. He took account of the delay, the late attempt to show the claim’s potential scale, and the absence of evidence that Bradley Construction would be unable to meet a later arbitration award.
Clarke proposed entering judgment for the amount claimed while staying execution on sums above €100,000 until the arbitration was determined or further order. He also proposed liberty to apply and said he would be minded to remove the stay unless S. & R. Motors expedited the arbitration proceedings. The judgment does not determine whether the floor was defective or the value of any resulting loss.