The High Court has set aside a Circuit Court summary judgment of €63,655.87 against Sean Glynn and Bernadette Glynn in a dispute with BWG Foods Unlimited Company, sending the case back to the Circuit Court in Galway for a full hearing.
In a judgment delivered on 8 April 2024, Mr Justice Conleth Bradley refused BWG’s application for summary judgment. He found a fair and reasonable probability that the Glynn defendants had a real or bona fide defence. The court did not decide whether that defence will succeed or whether the personal guarantee is enforceable.
The dispute concerns a guarantee signed in April 2005 in connection with credit supplied to Glynnco Limited, a company directed by the defendants. BWG says the guarantee supports its claim for arrears after the company defaulted. The Circuit Court had entered judgment for €63,655.87 plus costs on 10 May 2023.
The defendants contend that the Trading/Credit Agreement was a standalone agreement signed on 1 April 2005, without any requirement for personal guarantees. They say they signed guarantees on 4 and 11 April after BWG representative Seán Carter assured them the guarantees would last only a short time because the business was a start-up without a credit rating. Carter denies making that assurance. The defendants also argue that the 11 April guarantee was unenforceable for want of consideration, saying the relevant credit agreement was already in place.
The judge said the competing accounts of what was said and when, and the question of consideration, required further evidence and legal argument. He considered that oral evidence at a full hearing could provide material support for the defendants’ case. At this stage, he was not deciding the witnesses’ credibility or the merits of the defence; the question was whether it was clear that the defendants had no defence. He concluded that it was not.
The High Court ordered that the Circuit Court judgment be set aside, refused BWG’s summary judgment application and remitted the case for a full hearing in Galway. The judge said he would hear the parties on the precise terms of the final order and ancillary matters, including costs, at a mention listed for 19 April 2024.