The High Court has adjourned for one week proceedings by the Mahon tribunal aimed at compelling Sunday Business Post journalist Barry O'Kelly to reveal the source of stories based on leaked confidential documents from the tribunal.
The court also adjourned proceedings in which the tribunal is seeking to restrain the Sunday Business Post and other media from publishing stories based on information leaked from the inquiry.
When the two sets of proceedings were mentioned briefly yesterday before the President of the High Court, Mr Justice Finnegan, Mr Paul O'Higgins SC, for the tribunal, said there had been agreement that the matters be adjourned for a week. Mr O'Kelly did not attend the short hearing.
He has previously indicated he would fight the tribunal's application "tooth and nail" and has said he would not reveal his sources. He also stated he would go to prison if necessary.
The tribunal's application arose after the Sunday Business Post published two articles by Mr O'Kelly last October.
Both were based on confidential documents circulated by the tribunal to parties appearing before it.
When called before the tribunal, Mr O'Kelly refused to reveal the sources of those articles and said he had destroyed the documents, despite a direction by the tribunal not to do so.
The tribunal subsequently procured an interim High Court injunction preventing all newspapers from publishing stories based on information leaked from the tribunal.