ABOUT 100 small farmers who borrowed money to develop their farms yesterday won their Supreme Court appeal against the Minister for Agriculture's failure to give them expanded outlets for the sale of their milk.
By a three-two majority, the court decided the case should be remitted to the High Court. The form of the inquiry to be held in the High Court will be argued by counsel for both parties on Friday.
It is estimated that about 400 farmers took part in the development scheme but yesterday's case was backed by a group of about 100 farmers. The plans were lodged before 1984 when the milk super levy was introduced.
Mr Justice Barrington, in one of the majority judgments, said the farmers, having incurred heavy expenditure, found they would not get the outlet for the sale of their milk which they were induced to believe they would receive.
He said the Minister made three decisions, none of which he was entitled in law to make in the circumstances prevailing in 1984.
He decided to divide the entire national milk quota between the dairies and co-ops, not to create a national reserve and to make provision for development farmers and others out of what became referred to as "flexi-milk" (consisting of openings for the purchase of milk which might become available in any co-op because a producer had gone out of production or had failed to fulfil his quota).
Mr Justice Barrington referred to the dismissal of the farmers' claims in 1992 by the High Court. He said that unfortunately the case was approached in the High Court as if the Minister made a decision between the co-ops and the development farmers and decided, in accordance with the national interest, to favour the Co-ops.
Mr Justice O'Flaherty, who also found in favour of the farmers, said that on the introduction of the milk super levy in March, 1984, Ireland was allocated 104.6 per cent of the milk production for the base year (1983).
The mistake the Minister made was that he did not constitute a national reserve at all. He gave away the whole milk quota to the dairies and the co-operatives.
As a result he was not in a position to satisfy his legal obligations and in July 1984, he gave notice he intended to provide for the special categories and that their quotas would come from those "freed by suppliers who have ceased delivery" (known as flexi-milk).
However, said Mr Justice O'Flaherty, the Minister's officials were told by EC officials that it was not possible to supply those special categories out of quotas that had been allocated. They could only be provided out of the national reserve, and there was no national reserve.
Mr Justice Barrington allowed the appeal and said the matter should go back to the High Court. He said he would hear arguments on the form of inquiry that the" High Court should undertake.
He said it might not now be practicable for the court or Minister to give these particular farmers the outlet for the sale of their milk which they were led by State agencies to believe they would get but the court could, at least, award them compensation for their loss.
He would also rem it the case to the High Court to have the damage suffered by each plaintiff assessed.
Mr Justice Blayney agreed with the judgments of Mr Justice O'Flaherty and Mr Justice Barrington. The Chief Justice, Mr Justice Hamilton, and Mr Justice Keane dismissed the appeal.