Former meat trader Martin McAdam has confirmed he will appeal a High Court ruling made earlier this month that he should supply security of costs of €640,000 before bringing a defamation case against the ABP Food Group.
Mr McAdam is suing the Larry Goodman-owned company for defamation over a press release it issued during the horse meat controversy last year, stating that it had bought product from his company which was found to contain horse DNA.
Before the case could proceed, ABP sought security of costs of €640,000 from Mr McAdam to ensure that he would be able to pay its costs should he lose the case.
On November 14th, president of the High Court Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns ruled that McAdam Food Products Ltd had failed to show any special circumstances entitling it not to provide security for costs of the action.
Mr McAdam said he was very disappointed with the judgment and believed that he had no option but to appeal the ruling. Asked if he was worried about the costs of taking the case further, he said: “Of course I am. Costs are a big thing but this is something I feel passionate about and I’m not prepared to walk away from it.”
Implications for others
He said the ruling had implications for other small companies that had grievances with large companies. A requirement to lodge a large sum in the bank before being allowed to proceed with an action would be a clear deterrent to them.
In January 2013 the Silvercrest plant in Monaghan, then owned by ABP, was at the centre of the horse meat scandal after it was found to have manufactured a burger that contained 29 per cent horse DNA. The addition of horse meat to beef products was later found to be a pan-European problem.
Mr McAdam's barrister, Jim O'Callaghan SC, had told the High Court that ABP had "hung out" his company to dry and categorised Mr McAdam as a "rogue trader" responsible for the horse meat scandal. He said the finances of McAdam Food Products Ltd "fell off a cliff" as a result of the press release.
The McAdam company had total receipts of €835,103 in the four months prior to February 5th, 2013, but those fell to €32,238 in the four months afterwards, it was claimed. Mr O’Callaghan told the court that any alleged inability of Mr McAdam to provide security for costs was directly attributable to the actions of ABP.
Call to set aside
Mr McAdam has now called on ABP to set aside the legal costs to allow the case to go ahead. “ABP is the largest beef processor in Europe and I hereby call on them publicly to do the honourable thing and set aside these legal costs, in order to challenge me in the courts that I did supply them with horse meat and provide evidence, for the good of the public interest and the Irish beef industry,” he said.
Asked if ABP would consider this, a spokesman said: “ABP was pleased with last week’s judgment and will continue vigorously defending these proceedings. However, it would be inappropriate for any party to comment on the substance of this dispute which is currently before the High Court and is due to be heard by a jury in due course.”
