O’doherty & Waters left with legal costs
Pair’s huge bill after losing case on Covid-19 laws
GEMMA O’doherty and John Waters are facing a huge legal bill after the High Court ruled they must pay the costs of their failed bid to challenge Covid-19 laws.
Yesterday, Mr Justice Charles Meenan said the ex-journalists must foot the bills of the State respondents and notice parties – the Dail, Seanad and Ceann Comhairle.
He added the costs, estimated to be a five-figure sum, should be limited to the two-day hearing of their application only.
Last month, the court refused to grant the pair permission to have their judicial review challenge against the legislation go to a full hearing.
Mr Waters and Ms O’doherty, who claim the laws are unconstitutional, are appealing the dismissal of their action to the Court of Appeal.
The State’s lawyer Patrick Mccann said the pair were not entitled to invoke public interest as a reason for bringing their proceedings. The notice parties’ barrister Francis Kieran relied on the court’s finding that the case against the Oireachtas was unstateable.
Ms O’doherty and Mr Waters, who represented themselves, said they should not have to pay legal costs on several grounds.
They also claimed they were entitled to a protective costs order and it was unnecessary for the Oireachtas to be separately represented from the State in the case.
Mr Justice Meehan said their contention they ought not to be penalised by having to pay the costs because the action was brought in the public interest “does not stand up to much scrutiny”.
He added the applicants did not engage with the case being made by the respondents, including the legal principles being relied on to resist their challenge “in any meaningful way”.
In his judgment dismissing their application for leave, the judge said they had not provided the court with any expert evidence or facts to support their view the laws were unconstitutional.