Wallace in High Court fight to keep his home
WEXFORD Deputy Mick Wallace is fighting to keep his family home and is examining alternatives to bankruptcy.
The High Court was told that the Independent deputy had hired a personal insolvency practitioner to write to AIB to see if the family home can be retained.
He is also in the process of drafting a statement of affairs, which will be given to the court later this month.
The heavily-indebted Wexford politician is expected to fight efforts by vulture fund Cerberus to have him declared bankrupt.
A bankruptcy petition was filed last month by one of its Irish subsidiaries Promontoria (Aran) Ltd.
Mr Wallace has been the foremost critic of the deal through which Cerberus bought Nama’s Northern Ireland loans portfolio Project Eagle, the Irish Independent reports.
The fund also bought loans the TD had with Ulster Bank.
It subsequently got a judgement against him for €2m.
When the matter came before Ms Justice Caroline Costello in the High Court yesterday (Monday), she was told by barrister Keith Farry for Mr Wallace that he was seeking an adjournment to allow him engage with a personal insolvency practitioner and was pursuing alternatives to bankruptcy.
The practitioner had also written to AIB to see if Mr Wallace’s family home can be retained, he said.
A response is expected before the next court date on December 19. Mr Wallace also intends to have a statement of affairs ready at that stage. He is being represented by Eames Solicitors in the case. There was no objection from Eddie Farrelly for Promontoria (Aran) Ltd to the adjournment. Mr Wallace was not in court for the brief hearing.
He would not lose his Dáil seat if declared a bankrupt thanks to a change in the law two years ago.