The High Court dismissed two motions brought by Anne Daly, including her request for permission to continue plenary proceedings while the assets in those proceedings remained vested in the Official Assignee.
In a judgment delivered on 21 January 2021, Mr Justice Richard Humphreys also rejected a motion seeking an order concerning a “Free Legal Aid Support Certification”. He said a person seeking civil legal aid should apply to the Legal Aid Board, with review and possible further legal routes available if an application is refused. A motion in the proceedings against the other side was not the appropriate procedure.
The legal aid motion also sought to join Ms Daly’s 2015 proceedings with separate proceedings brought by her daughter, Laura Daly. The judge said the basis for joining them had not been made out. He added that Ms Daly could not seek that relief without first obtaining permission to prosecute the 2015 case.
Ms Daly was adjudicated bankrupt in June 2016 and discharged in June 2017. The judgment states that her assets remained vested in the Official Assignee after discharge. The court considered her August 2019 motion for liberty to continue the 2015 proceedings, along with the legal aid motion, which had been transferred to the bankruptcy list.
The Official Assignee’s view was that the 2015 proceedings did not appear to disclose a cause of action. Justice Humphreys said the Official Assignee, as the person holding the assets for creditors’ benefit, was best placed to assess how they should be managed. He found no basis for court intervention on the material before him.
The court dismissed both motions. It did not determine the merits of the underlying 2015 proceedings in this judgment.