Father and son stopped speaking over land dispute, court hears
A Co Kildare man never spoke to his father after he discovered that 5.5 acres of farmland that he claims he was promised was to be put up for sale, the High Court heard today.
Mr Liam Lynch (47), from Lattinbog, Naas, Co Kildare has brought a High Court action against the estate of his later father Patrick Lynch aimed at securing a plot of farmland at Gingerstown, Caragh near Naas in Co Kildare.
Mr Lynch is seeking a declaration from the High Court that he is entitled to the 5.5 acres of farm land, which the High Court was told was left equally to him and his six brothers and two sisters in their
late father's will.
Today Mr Justice John Hedigan, who is hearing the case, appealed to the parties that it was "not too late to settle the matter" out of court.
The Judge said said that "nothing good can come" from a dispute over five and half acres of land that has "split a family down the middle."
Opening the case counsel Mr Colm Ó Hoisin said that it was his client's case that that it been understood within the Lynch family that the lands at Gingerstown would go to Liam Lynch.
Originally the land was purchased by Liam Lynch's maternal grandfather Patsy Campbell, who died aged 97 in 1990.
Afterwards the land was then put in the name of Liam Lynchs' mother Kathleen and his father Patrick. Mrs Lynch died after a sudden illness in 2002, and the land was then in the name of Patrick Lynch.
In 2004 Liam Lynch claimed that one of his brother's told him that their father wanted to sell the land.
That was followed up by a letter some weeks later from Patrick Lynch, who in his later years had suffered from a number of illnesses, informing his children that he wished to sell the land so that he would be comfortable during his final few years.
Counsel said Liam Lynch was shocked by this, and as a result the court heard never spoke to his father again.
In 2005, shortly before his 76 birthday Patrick Lynch passed away. In his will Patrick Lynch stipulated that the 5.5 acres of land and the family home to be divided equally between all his children.
Mr Lynch, who lost his leg in a turf cutting accident, who now keeps cattle on 40 acres of rented property and is involved in turf cutting said that nothing has been done with the land since 2004.
Liam Lynch said that he had done all the work in relation to the land. In his evidence Liam Lynch said that he was the only member of his family that had shown an interest in the land or had done any work on it, which was mainly used for cattle. He had worked and maintained it from a young age until 2004.
While he worked different jobs throughout his life he claimed that he had done all the physical work and the paper work in relation to the plot. He had lived at the family home until 2000, before moving to his own home.
He claimed that initially his grandfather, then his mother and also his father had said to him at different times that he was to get the land.
However this all changed in 2004 when his father, whom he said he had previously got on with, decided to sell the property.
He said that he never spoke to his father after that, and their final communication, through one of his brothers, was a refusal to furnish Liam with details in relation to the heard of cattle that were kept by
the family on the 5.5 acre plot.
The case, which is expected to last for three days, continues.
