The Supreme Court has refused Alma Flack leave to appeal directly from the High Court in her case with Danske Bank A/S. The determination was delivered on 2 July 2015.
The High Court had ruled in the bank's favour in summary proceedings and awarded it €154,429.69. The proceedings related to an amount outstanding following the sale of a property. Ms Flack, who represented herself, said she had been unable to defend her position. She claimed the bank shared responsibility for the debt because of lending procedures at its Monaghan branch, formerly National Irish Bank. The bank disputed this.
Ms Flack applied under Article 34.5.4 of the Constitution for a direct, or "leapfrog", appeal to the Supreme Court. The bank opposed the application. The court considered her grounds with special care because she was a lay litigant, although they were not directed at the issues needed for such an application.
The Supreme Court found that the constitutional threshold for leave had not been met and that there were no exceptional circumstances to justify a leapfrog appeal. It said the application raised no issue of general public importance, and an appeal to the Supreme Court was not necessary in the interests of justice. Her right of appeal is met by an appeal to the Court of Appeal.