An application in relation to the estate of deceased Dublin solicitor and property developer Ivor Fitzpatrick has been adjourned for a week by the High Court.
A grant of probate has yet to be extracted in the estate of the high-profile solicitor who died on March 24th, 2024, aged 68. He was reputed to be worth about €100 million at the time of his death.
Fitzpatrick founded a successful law firm, Ivor Fitzpatrick & Co, and was involved in substantial property developments. He lived for many years in a 19th century castle in Co Wicklow and was a member of a syndicate that bought the Christina O 100m yacht formerly owned by Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis.
Fitzpatrick was a long-time supporter and friend of the late taoiseach Charles Haughey, whom he represented during tribunal investigations. His firm also represented the late Brigid McCole and others adversely affected by the hepatitis C blood contamination scandal.
An application by a financial fund, BCM Global Ltd, for a limited grant which would enable an administrator to take proceedings on its behalf if necessary, came before the High Court’s probate list on Monday.
Due to statutory time limits, it is necessary to have the application for a limited grant determined within four weeks, barrister Karl Dowling, for the fund, said.
A three-week adjournment was sought by Stephen Spierin, for Fitzpatrick’s wife Susan, a notice party to the fund’s application.
Spierin said he expected a full grant of probate will issue before the statutory time limit expires, which would render a limited grant unnecessary.
Papers have been lodged with the probate office to extract a full grant of probate, with the effect that any proceedings can be taken against the administrator of the entire estate.
An adjournment to allow for the full grant to be extracted would save time and costs, said Spierin. If a full grant was not issued within the next three weeks, his side would consent to the fund’s application for a limited grant, he said.
The three weeks could allow for certain matters to be resolved, Spierin also said. The estate was complex and various business interests had to be valued but all of that has been done and the relevant papers lodged.
Having described three weeks as a “tight” time frame to allow for a full grant to issue, Dowling said he wished to proceed with the application.
Judge Carmel Stewart said there were a lot of emails and correspondence back and forth between the parties and there was no question of the applicant not having taken steps to “bring matters to a head”.
She said she would adjourn the application for one week to allow the notice party provide materials to the applicant concerning valuations.