The Court of Appeal has allowed appeals by Ann-Marie Cawley and John Lynch, permitting the estate of the late Thomas Connors to be joined as a defendant in their proceedings against Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council. The court did not decide whether claims against the estate are time-barred or determine who was responsible for the fire at a halting site in Carrickmines in 2015.
The proceedings arise from a fire on the night of 10 October 2015 at a prefabricated cabin or mobile home at Glenamuck Road South. Ten people died, including Thomas Connors, his wife Sylvia Lynch Connors and two of her brothers. Cawley, a sister of Sylvia Lynch Connors, brought wrongful death proceedings on behalf of herself and other dependants. Lynch, also a sibling, brought a separate claim for personal injuries and mental distress. Both actions were issued against the Council in March 2018.
The plaintiffs allege that the Council owned and maintained the accommodation and that it was unsafe, including because of alleged failures in fire protection and escape arrangements. Their applications to add the estate followed evidence at the January 2019 inquest suggesting that an unattended chip-pan may have started the fire after Thomas Connors had consumed chips. The plaintiffs’ solicitor said they were neutral about that evidence. The proposed amended claims allege that Connors may also have caused the fire or allowed it to spread. These remain allegations, not findings in this appeal.
The Council opposed joinder, arguing that claims against the estate were barred by section 9(2) of the Civil Liability Act 1961. The estate was not before the court, and there was no evidence that it would rely on a limitation defence if joined.
The Court of Appeal said limitation issues should generally be dealt with after joinder, once a defence is raised, or through a preliminary issue or at trial. A court may refuse joinder in a clear case where the claim is manifestly time-barred and the proposed defendant clearly intends to rely on that bar. Neither condition was established here. The court also declined to decide whether section 9(2) extinguishes a right of action or only bars a remedy, finding that the Council had not shown its interpretation was clearly correct.
The appeals were allowed and the requested joinder and amendment orders were made. The court directed that the amended summonses be served within 14 days. The orders were made without hearing Mary Connors, proposed as the estate’s representative; she or another interested person may apply to set aside or vary her appointment. Any limitation defence remains open to the estate, and the High Court may address it later. The Court of Appeal gave a provisional view that the Council should bear appeal costs, subject to a possible further hearing.