Greg Kavanagh firm pursued over €1.8m deal to buy ownership of development land

High Court Reporters

Three businessmen are seeking High Court orders requiring a developer, Greg Kavanagh, to complete an agreement to pay €1.8 million to their firm, which owns land with planning permission for 35 homes. 

Seamus Palmer, Barry Byrne, and Seamus Nolan are directors and equal shareholders of Elderwood, owner of a property known as the Longwood Village development site, which consists of 3.81 acres near Longwood in Co Meath.

It has planning permission for 35 terraced, semi-detached, and detached houses.

They are suing development company Close Line Cole Ltd, seeking orders that the defendant transfer sums as per the agreement to be held in an accountable trust pending discharge of the plaintiffs of the obligations under the agreement.

In July 2024, Elderwood put the property up for sale, and following negotiations with Mr Kavanagh, on behalf of Beakonshaw Ltd, it agreed to buy the land for €2.35 million excluding VAT.

There were further negotiations, and it was then agreed that Beakonshaw, through a nominated subsidiary, would purchase Elderwood instead of the land, but also for €2.35 million.

In an affidavit seeking entry of the dispute to the Commercial Court, Elderwood director Seamus Nolan, on behalf of all three directors, said draft heads of terms were prepared whereby €2.35 million would be payable for the purchase of Elderwood. 

There was a delay however in progressing matters and in April 2025, the three plaintiffs met with Kavanagh in his office where he said that as the planning permission for Longwood was due to expire in September 2025, the total purchase price to be paid by Close Line would be reduced from €2.35 million to €1.8 million with a €50,000 deposit to be paid in respect of this revised arrangement.

Permission was later extended to September 2028.

Nolan said he and his two colleagues agreed to the reduced price but did not agree to the defendant being afforded access to the lands to begin construction as Kavanagh had sought. 

There was a further delay as the three plaintiffs awaited the transfer of purchase funds to be held in trust before they would release the required signed documentation for the deal.  

There was further direct contact between Nolan and Kavanagh, Nolan said, but nothing was agreed. On August 28th, the purchase of Elderwood was terminated due to alleged non-performance.

The defendants denied that the plaintiffs had any entitlement to do so and that the plaintiffs had not complied with their obligations.

Further discussions followed, but ultimately legal proceedings were issued.  

The case came before the Commercial Court on Monday when Justice Mark Sanfey agreed to adjourn an application to enter the matter into the fast track commercial list for two weeks.