Michael O'Connor, a farmer from Co Tipperary, has been awarded €124,431 in the High Court under his entitlement to the Single Farm Payment that was denied him in 2010. He has also been awarded the vast majority of his legal costs.

However, as the Department of Agriculture has indicated it may be appealing the decision, a stay has been placed on payment of the sum and the farmer's legal costs until a decision to appeal is made.

Background

In 2010, Michael O'Connor from Nenagh, Co Tipperary, claimed an area of land in his Single Farm Payment that included rented commanage, which court documents show amounted to 46ha.

The Department of Agriculture subsequently inspected the farm and found that "there was no evidence of farming activity on this land", which was "overgrown" and had animals "only put in a few days prior to this visit".

As a result of the inspection, O'Connor was found to have claimed more than 20% ineligible land, which disqualified him from receiving any of his Single Farm and Disadvantaged Area Payment for 2010. According to documents submitted by the farmer's lawyer, this amounted to €147,000.

O'Connor subsequently requested a review of the inspection which confirmed the Department's decision. He then unsuccessfully appealed the review under the Agricultural Appeals Act between 2012 and 2013, before making his appeal to the High Court in 2013, the first time any such case had been brought before the High Court.

The consequences for the farmer of not receiving his Single Farm Payment in 2010 had been horrendous

In his ruling on 2 June 2016, Judge Michael White said the Department's inspection of the land was so "procedurally flawed" that O'Connor should be entitled to his Single Farm Payment for his eligible land of 160.57ha in 2010, but should not be paid any sum for the wrongly claimed commonage. He also found O'Connor liable for a 5% sanction imposed as a result of a separate cross-compliance check on his cattle.

Costs

In her plea to Judge White during the costs hearing on Thursday 28 July, Alice Fawcett for O'Connor told the court that the consequences for the farmer of not receiving his Single Farm Payment in 2010 had been "horrendous".

"He had to restructure all his loans and his wife had to take up four jobs," she told Judge White.

Meanwhile, Michael Tuite for the Department of Agriculture argued that O'Connor should not be awarded all his legal costs because there had been "a very considerable finding" for the Department of Agriculture in the June judgment by virtue of the fact that the commonage area was found to be ineligible for the Single Farm Payment.

"Although the inspection was found to be procedurally flawed, that land was not agricultural land and the court has agreed with that. For this reason each side should get a proportion of the legal costs," he said.

After hearing from both sides, Judge White awarded O'Connor the vast majority of his legal costs plus the Single Farm Payment of €124,431 for his eligible land from 2010.

The judge also ruled that 2% interest should be applied to the sum from 20 April 2012, the date the Agricultural Appeals Office upheld the review of the Department's findings, until the date the money is paid.

Judge White, however, placed a stay on the execution of the judgment pending the decision by the Department of Agriculture to appeal.

The judge ruled that if the Department is unsuccessful in its appeal, interest of 8% will be applied to the Single Farm Payment sum from today, Thursday, until the date the Department loses its appeal.

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'Flawed' inspection saves farmer €100,000 penalty in High Court