The High Court has rejected complaints by a Dublin estate agent that he is not being treated fairly by the Flood tribunal.
The tribunal had argued it was entitled to look for explanations for the role played by Mr John Finnegan in the sale of convent lands at Monkstown, Co Dublin, in 1976 to a company controlled by a firm of developers, Brennan and Mc Gowan, which is being questioned by the tribunal.
The tribunal is investigating planning matters and whether payments were made or benefits provided to Mr Ray Burke, a former Fianna Fail minister.
Mr Finnegan, Seapoint Avenue, Monkstown, had complained that during the tribunal examination of builder Mr Tom Brennan, allegations were made to get Mr Brennan to say Mr Finnegan had acted for both sides in the land deal and took money from both sides.
Mr Finnegan had asked the court to hold that the tribunal would be exceeding its powers if it inquired into matters other than the "authorisation of the payment to Mr Raphael Burke and Canio Ltd".
Rejecting Mr Finnegan's application yesterday in a reserved judgment, Mr Justice Kearns said it had emerged in the course of the tribunal's inquiry into the affairs of Brennan and McGowan that a company controlled by Mr Burke (Caviar Ltd) got two payments, the first, £60,000, in November 1984, and £15,000 in April 1985 from a company called Canio Ltd registered in Jersey.
Mr Finnegan had a one-third interest in Canio, the other two-thirds being owned by Messrs Brennan and McGowan via Jersey-based companies. Mr Finnegan's company was Foxtown Investments based in Guernsey.
Of £60,000 paid to Mr Burke, £25,000 each was paid on behalf of Brennan and McGowan and £10,000 from Mr Finnegan's Foxtown Investments.
The judge said he wished to stress that Mr Finnegan contended the payment to Mr Burke was made without his knowledge or authorisation.
Mr Justice Kearns said it appeared Mr Finnegan, acting for the nuns, had approached Brennan and McGowan about the possible purchase of the lands belonging to the Sacred Heart convent in Monkstown. The leasehold interest was bought for £210,000 by a company in which Brennan and McGowan were shareholders.
The freehold interest in the land was later assigned to a Jersey company, Bouganville Investments, which was beneficially owned by Mr Brennan, Mr McGowan and Mr Finnegan. Mr Finnegan's involvement in this aspect of the matter took place, he claimed, when his duty to the nuns was over.
As part of a pre-arranged scheme, the freehold and leasehold interests in the lands were merged. Brennan and McGowan companies got £200,000, Foxtown Investments £100,000 and Mr Finnegan got £5,000.
During the tribunal hearings, counsel for the tribunal had pressed Mr Brennan for some explanation as to what Mr Finnegan had "brought to the table" that warranted a payment of £105,000 by or on behalf of Brennan and McGowan.
Mr Justice Kearns said he did not find in any way, either through questioning by its counsel or rulings of the tribunal chairman, that the tribunal had failed to protect or vindicate Mr Finnegan's reputation.