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A SUPERIOR COURT judge has ruled that ex-FAI Chief John Delaney’s examination of files seized by the Office of the Director of Corporate Compliance (ODCE) as part of his criminal investigation into matters at the FAI should be completed mid- from January.
Delaney has tried to inspect 280,000 documents, covering a 17-year period, which were seized by the ODCE from FAI offices last February as part of its investigation into the governing body of Irish football.
ODCE has asked the court to determine whether some files are covered by professional legal privilege and cannot be used by the corporate watchdog as part of its investigation.
Delaney was allowed to inspect the files, including thousands of emails, to see which ones are private to him or covered by professional legal privilege.
The matter first came to court last February.
While a timetable for the completion of the inspection was agreed, lawyers for the former UK-based FAI chief executive sought more time to complete the inspection.
The extension was necessary due to the large volume of material, it was argued.
In a series of motions before the court, Delaney, represented by Paul McGarry SC, sought more time to complete the inspection.
The extension will be assisted by the ODCE which will allow your attorneys to apply additional search terms to help identify more files so they can be inspected.
The court was also asked to extend the completion date to mid-January 2021.
The attorney said Delaney had already done a lot of work and the 3,000 files previously “tagged” by Delaney’s attorneys as covered by professional legal privilege had been reduced.
The attorney also said that if Delaney was unable to inspect all files before any designated completion date set by the court, then he would have claimed professional legal privilege over all pending material.
It was said that this could lead to more work for those involved throughout the process, and that Delaney did not delay or attempt to delay the process.
‘Unjustified and unnecessary’
The requests were rejected by the ODCE, represented by Kerida Naidoo SC, who said Delaney’s request for additional time was “unjustified and unnecessary.”
Any additional time would cause further delays in the investigation process, the attorney added.
The ODCE said it wanted the court to set a December date for the extension competition.
The attorney said Delaney had initially sought an end date in December when the matter was previously in court.
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In her ruling, Judge Leonie Reynolds said she was not prepared to issue an order that would allow Delaney to apply additional search terms to the records inspection process.
The judge said the seized material had already been inspected using sophisticated software and through various search terms provided by Delaney’s attorneys.
Addressing Delaney’s concerns about her privacy, the judge said she was satisfied that the safeguards contained in the relevant legislation would protect her rights.
The judge added that the inspection process should be completed by January 11.
It also confirmed the appointment of attorney Niall Nolan as the independent person who would examine the review materials on which claims of legal privilege are made.
The judge said Nolan will prepare a report for the court that will help the judge determine which material is privileged and which is not.
The matter will return to court in the new year.
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