Irvine tribunal told of 'cynical ploy'
Eddie Irvine’s former business partner was the victim of a nakedly cynical strategy to oust him from their pub company, it was claimed today.
The Formula One star had invested in his friend John Foley’s two pubs – Cocoon and O’Reilly’s – and then took over a 50% share of the company.
Mr Foley was later dismissed by Calview Investments, owners of Cocoon, for cashing personal cheques in the bars without the necessary funds and for paying personal debts with company money.
Today, the tribunal hearing Mr Foley’s case of unfair dismissal against Calview was told that there was a strategy to wrest control of the company which had nothing to do with the reasons he was dismissed.
Counsel for Mr Foley, Frank Callanan, said: “Mr Foley was dismissed as part of an attempt, and a successful attempt, by Mr Irvine, carefully planned and executed by these gentlemen, to wrest control of Frameway (the holding company) and all its subsidiaries.”
Mr Callanan told the Employment Appeals Tribunal that the company board made Mr Foley drop plans to develop a site at Duke Street, in which he had invested a great deal of time and money, to concentrate on the existing pubs.
But Mr Irvine asked Mr Foley to manage the construction of his house at Kilross, Dalkey, and consulted him on properties and sites for nightclubs in Miami and Croatia.
Alan Nee, who managed Eddie Irvine’s business affairs at the time, said that they had been open to investment in the Duke Street project but that the figures didn’t add up.
He said: “Duke Street was not a vendetta I had against Mr Foley.
“It was there, it may or may not have been viable and it was up to the the board to evaluate it.”
He said that despite presentations by John Foley, the conditions of the bar business in Dublin at the time made the venture too high risk and they needed to get the basic business right first.
Mr Callanan said the tribunal had heard that the companies involved were cash strapped and under constant financial pressure.
Despite this, Mr Irvine had diverted €300,000 from a loan promised to the company into a deposit for a house in Dalkey, the tribunal was told.
“The €300,000 was very important in terms of the extraordinary systematic maximisation of leverage on the part of the Irvine interest,” Mr Callanan said.
But Tom Mallon, counsel for Calview, said that all of the money invested after Mr Irvine took a stake in the company was “drip fed” when needed.
He said that the €300,000 used by Mr Irvine was a “red herring”, as it was replaced in a matter of days.
When Mr Foley raised concerns that money was not forthcoming as agreed, Mr Irvine told him “I have the power, I have the money, concentrate on Kilross”, Mr Callanan said.
But Mr Nee said he couldn’t see how Mr Irvine would say that to Mr Foley.
“There was no animosity between them, proven by their holiday trips together,’ he said.
The tribunal was adjourned until July.
