The Mahon tribunal has refused an application for legal costs, estimated at over €10 million, by Joseph Murphy Structural Engineering and four of its executives.
In his ruling that the State will not pay any of the costs incurred by the JMSE interests, Judge Alan Mahon yesterday accused the company and executives of "unlawful and disreputable" conduct at the tribunal.
However, Judge Mahon's decision, and his right to determine JMSE's costs, are likely to be challenged by the company in the High Court shortly.
Two years ago the tribunal's second interim report found that the millionaire owner of JMSE, Mr Joseph Murphy snr and his son, also Joseph, were involved in a corrupt payment to the former minister Mr Ray Burke. Mr Murphy snr has since died.
Two other JMSE executives, Mr Roger Copsey and Mr Frank Reynolds, were also implicated, while adverse though less serious findings were made against a further two executives, Mr Tim O'Keeffe and Mr John Bates.
Judge Mahon said he had to accept these findings and to assume they were fairly made.
The findings were so "serious, extensive and far-reaching" as to lead any reasonable person to conclude that the individuals concerned were intent on ensuring the tribunal would not find the truth.
"To put it more simply, the conduct of the applicants in their dealings with the tribunal was unlawful and disreputable, and amounts to a fundamental disregard for the very purpose of the tribunal, and their legal duty to co-operate with it."
The chairman rejected arguments by JMSE's lawyers, who claimed their clients had "positively assisted" the tribunal on some matters, and that the tribunal had made "neutral or even positive" findings in relation to other issues.
"The mere fact that an applicant for costs may have co-operated in respect of some issues cannot be viewed as positive in terms of his behaviour, if the overall thrust of his involvement with the tribunal was to have been knowingly untruthful, obstructive and misleading," he said.
JMSE representatives gave evidence for 49 days, including 14 days when the tribunal travelled to hear evidence from Mr Murphy snr near his home in Guernsey.
The tribunal spent four days reading this evidence into the record back in Dublin.
Mr Garrett Cooney SC, Mr Dan Herbert SC and Mr Michael Cush SC and Fitzsimons Redmond represented the company at the inquiry.
Although JMSE submitted no estimate of its costs to the tribunal, Judge Mahon said yesterday they were "undoubtedly very substantial".
