In order to proceed with a High Court case against Keegan Quarries Ltd, a cement supplier accused of providing substandard concrete for a high-profile office building based in Dublin, KC Capital Property Group Ltd has been instructed to secure €771,410 in legal costs by Mr Justice Max Barrett in case the case is lost. Keegan Quarries had provided the concrete for the basement and ground floors of the nine-storey Greenside Building on Cuffe Street.
The property development firm has stated that the expense to clear the purportedly flawed concrete is around €9 million, and their overall loss and damage sum to €13 million. The company terminated the contract with the original primary contractor and hired a new one.
Keegan Quarries, however, refutes any negligence and asserts that if any defective concrete existed, which they deny, it was unnecessary to remove it entirely as that escalated the repair works costs significantly. Before the hearing, Keegan requested the High Court to insist that KC Capital secure costs for the case defence, a request that KC Capital contested.
Subsequently, Mr Justice Barrett ordered KC Capital to provide security, noting that it is a unique entity established specifically for the acquisition and development of the Greenside site. Moreover, he observed that except for the starting investment of €100, KC Capital was solely financed by Fairfield loans.
This arrangement potentially shields KC Capital from any cost orders that may favour Keegan. Furthermore, KC Capital was noted as a complex corporate structure encompassing at least one additional property. With the backing of its financier and heavily reliant on the Greenside Building, concerns regarding KC Capital’s ongoing viability have been expressed, highlighted in 2020’s reports.
Factors such as fluctuations in the property market and other uncontrollable situations provided the rationale for a security for costs application. Mr Justice Barrett found no unique circumstances that would decline a security for costs order. The security for costs totaling €771,410 was ordered in Keegan’s favour, and any subsequent proceeding was halted until the security was provided within three months from the judgment date.