The High Court yesterday cleared the way for a legal challenge to the granting of planning permission to Shamrock Rovers Football Club for development of a new stadium in south Co Dublin.
The club was granted planning permission to build the stadium in Tallaght by South Dublin County Council.
Objectors brought an appeal against the decision to An Bord Pleanala, which upheld the decision of the council.
The objectors were Old Bawn Community School, which is adjacent to the site for the stadium, Tymon Bawn Community Association and St Maelruan's GAA Club.
Following the decision of An Bord Pleanala, Mr Frank McCarthy, on behalf of Old Bawn Community School, instituted judicial review proceedings in the High Court to challenge the granting of planning permission.
During the hearing last month counsel for An Bord Pleanala, the council and Shamrock Rovers submitted that the judicial review proceedings should not be allowed proceed because there had been a failure to serve the two other objectors - the community association and the GAA club - with notice of the proceedings within the statutory time limit.
It was submitted that the community group and the GAA club had been served with notice of the proceedings but not within the prescribed time limit.
The net issue before the court was whether those two objectors were properly served, whether the statutory time limit under planning legislation was an absolute one and whether failure to serve the other two objectors was such as to prohibit the proceedings.
Mr Patrick Butler, for Shamrock Rovers, said there was an urgency about the case as his clients wanted to go in immediately to "lay" the pitch.
They would lose an entire year if they did not, he said.
Mr James Macken SC, for South Dublin County Council, said the court did not have the authority to extend the time limit.
To do so could only lead to uncertainty.
Parties to the appeal must be served, whatever about objectors who decided not to appeal, he argued.
Mr Paul Gallagher, for Old Bawn Community School, said the issue the court had to decide was the effect on the appeal of the non-service on the two parties.
The court had to ask itself if non-compliance with statutory requirements affected the validity of the judicial review process.
He contended it did not.
Delivering his reserved judgement today, Mr Justice Geoghegan found for Mr Gallagher.
He said An Bord Pleanala, the council and Shamrock Rovers had argued that because two other parties were involved in the original appeal against the board's decision, they should have been served with the proceedings within the statutory time limit.
The judge said he was satisfied that the word "parties" meant relevant parties to the judicial review proceedings.
It had been conceded there was no rational purpose in having the co-appellants as parties and there was simply a technical objection to the judicial review application.
In those circumstances, he held the application for leave to take the judicial review proceedings was properly constituted and could proceed.
He awarded costs to Mr McCarthy against the board, Shamrock Rovers and the council.
