The son of a woman, who had an estate worth €6 million, has been mandated by the High Court to return €192,000. This ruling came about after the judge alleged that the son exploited his mother’s incapacity to manage her own estate, culminating in a string of “alarming and indefensible” actions.
The judge, Brian Cregan, stated that Dermot Horan, upon gaining control of his late mother Mary Ann Horan’s (also referred to as Maureen) finances, withdrew €700 daily from ATMs over a year for his personal gains. Justice Cregan noted that this act showed a malicious intent to benefit financially from his ailing mother’s situation.
Justice Cregan instructed Mr Horan to repay the €192,000 he acquired after discovering that Mr Horan had wielded undue influence over his mother, who, until her demise in April 2018, resided in Ramor Park, Blanchardstown, Dublin.
This ruling was a result of a court-appointed administrator of Mrs Horan’s estate filing for an application, seeking validation that Mr Horan had illegitimately established a joint account with his dementia-stricken mother and subsequently improperly drained the account.
It was noted by the judge that Mrs Horan, under the terms of her 2006 will, bequeathed her €6 million estate to her four children, namely Dermot, Josephine, Stephen, and Yvonne. A notable portion of the asset was a valuable industrial property located at Fonthill Industrial Park, Clondalkin, Dublin, generating an annual rental income of approximately €264,000.
Dermot was the inheritor of the family residence in Ramor Park as well as the complete ownership, valued at around half a million, of the family business, Westwood International Transport Ltd. Although the company was founded by her late husband, it later almost ceased functioning. In total, Dermot was granted around €1 million from the estate, along with a quarter of the remaining properties.
Following allegations of misbehaviour, a legal counsel was assigned to take on the administrative duties, upon the request of Josephine, Yvonne and Stephen, thus replacing Dermot as executor by the court. It was highlighted by Mr Justice Cregan that there has been a significant amount of friction between Dermot and his siblings.
Dermot’s troublesome behaviour, for which Mr Justice Cregan placed sole blame, began to surface around September 2014 when his mother was hospitalised, exhibiting symptoms of abdominal discomfort and backache. Dermot didn’t agree with her being in the hospital, yet she remained there for 329 days till Dermot discharged her against professional medical advice in July of 2015.
Despite the hospital’s continuous pleas for them to come back and his siblings’ idea of giving their mother round-the-clock care at her home, Dermot firmly declined these. The judge noted this in his comments. It was after Mrs Horan had a subsequent fall that she was admitted back into the hospital in September of 2015. Meanwhile, his siblings became significantly worried about Dermot’s caregiving for their mother. Consequently, they sought and were granted an order for Mrs Horan to be named a ward of the court.
During the court proceedings, four separate doctors provided statements indicating that Mrs Horan was indeed suffering from dementia. Even though a public health nurse and a social worker didn’t find any immediate risk to Mrs Horan and approved of the care provided by Dermot, they claimed the cleanliness of her residence was less than ideal, particularly the unhygienic state of the kitchen.
Dermot Horan disputed all the medical reports and continued to assert that his mother was in good health. Dermot was also removed from his position as a trustee by an order given by Mr Justice Cregan. The judge determined Dermot to be an unreliable and non-credible witness. The judge found it absolutely unjustifiable the way Dermot redirected his mother’s earning from a rental property to a joint account he established, and how he withdrew all the funds from it.