The High Court has rejected attempts by Paul and Catherine Sullivan to reopen a mortgage possession case concerning property at Taghart North, Shercock, Co Cavan, describing their applications as without merit and an abuse of process.
Start Mortgages DAC obtained a Circuit Court possession order on December 7th, 2021. The Sullivans did not participate in the possession hearing, did not appeal that order and did not seek an extension of time to appeal. The order was executed on April 17th, 2024, when possession was delivered to Start Mortgages.
The couple later re-entered the property and brought applications seeking to set aside earlier Circuit Court orders and declarations that the possession proceedings were void. They argued, among other things, that Start Mortgages did not own the relevant loans, lacked standing to enforce them and that the Circuit Court lacked jurisdiction.
Mr Justice Mark Heslin stressed that the High Court was not hearing an appeal against the original possession order. That order had become final and, once executed, had already served its purpose.
The judge also refused an application to introduce new evidence from accountant Eric Rochford. The proposed evidence concerned the accounting treatment of assets in financial statements. The court found that the underlying information had been publicly available before the Circuit Court hearing and that the Sullivans had not shown why equivalent evidence could not have been obtained earlier with reasonable diligence.
The court further held that none of the exceptional circumstances required to reopen a final judgment had been established. The defendants had been free to make their arguments during the original proceedings or on appeal but had chosen not to do so.
Mr Justice Heslin was also strongly critical of repeated allegations of fraud, perjury, deception and criminality made against the plaintiff and others, finding that no evidence had been produced to support them.
The applications were dismissed. The judge said there was no reason to depart from the usual rule that costs follow the event, with formal orders to be addressed on December 18th, 2025.