Ryanair has asked a judge not to hear any further cases involving it due to comments made by her in some earlier cases, including saying \u201cit kills me stone dead\u201d to fly with the airline.<\/p>\n
Ryanair<\/a> claims that other comments made by District Court<\/a> Judge Stephanie Coggans in different cases suggest a \u201chostility\u201d towards, and \u201cdislike\u201d of, the airline such that an objective observer would think there was a risk it would not get a fair hearing before her.<\/p>\n On that basis, senior counsel Martin Hayden applied to Coggans at Balbriggan District Court on Thursday to recuse herself (withdraw) from hearing any cases involving Ryanair.<\/p>\n It is \u201ctrendy\u201d to complain about Ryanair; the airline \u201chas to face that day in and day out\u201d but it \u201cshould not have to deal with it from the bench\u201d, counsel said during submissions. <\/p>\n After the application concluded, Coggans said she needed time to consider the evidence and the case law submitted and would give her decision on December 2nd. <\/p>\n In an affidavit put before the judge, Thomas McNamara, Ryanair\u2019s director of legal, referred to a number of cases dealt with by her, including one by a man who sued Ryanair over missing his flight despite claiming to be at the gate at the time of it closing. <\/p>\n The man had claimed he had not received \u201ca last call\u201d and Ryanair\u2019s solicitor said last calls are not done by the airline, said McNamara. <\/p>\n He said Coggans then \u201cinexplicably commented that she believed they should\u201d, went on to say she knew Ryanair did not do last calls \u201cbecause I travel with them myself, although it kills me\u201d and later said: \u201cIt kills me stone dead.\u201d<\/p>\n Coggans also remarked to a witness there \u201cis frequently what I can only describe as a forceful method of dealing with people and that is what drives them mad, and that is what drives me mad, and I think sometimes people are treated very badly when very, very, very, very, very considerable amounts of money are made in profit\u201d. She had added: \u201cIt wouldn\u2019t kill you to be halfways polite to people.\u201d<\/p>\n