The High Court has dismissed Seamus Coyne’s attempt to reopen a €8.2 million judgment obtained by Danske Bank in 2011 and to annul the bankruptcy that followed.
The bank had sued Coyne under a 2008 guarantee securing substantial borrowings by TC Coyne Limited. In May 2011, the High Court held the guarantee enforceable and entered judgment for €8,225,171.84 plus costs and interest.
By February 2013, the bank said the debt had risen to €10,217,004.27. Coyne was adjudicated bankrupt in June 2013 and automatically discharged in June 2016.
In February 2026, he returned to court seeking to set aside the original judgment. Acting for himself, Coyne alleged fraud, perjury and material non-disclosure by bank witnesses and relied on documents he said he obtained through data requests in 2024 and 2025. He also sought annulment of his bankruptcy.
The Official Assignee opposed the application and argued that Coyne had no legal standing to challenge the judgment because any such cause of action formed part of his bankrupt estate and had vested in the Official Assignee.
Mr Justice Mark Sanfey agreed. He held that the challenge concerned Coyne’s contractual liability and estate rather than a personal cause of action such as defamation or personal injury. The Official Assignee had considered the proposed challenge, found no benefit to creditors and declined to pursue or assign it.
The judge accepted that bankruptcy legislation allows a former bankrupt personally to seek annulment. However, annulment requires "extremely compelling reasons". Coyne’s bankruptcy had run its full course, assets had been realised and almost ten years had passed since his discharge before the present motion.
The court also rejected Coyne’s claim that the Official Assignee was conflicted because of statutory indemnity arrangements with petitioning creditors.
The application was dismissed, with costs and other ancillary orders left for a later hearing.