Having just saved his beloved Castlehyde mansion from the receivers, Irish dancer Michael Flatley is now facing a request for well over €2 million upfront in potential legal costs.
His barrister, Ronnie Hudson, told the Commercial Court that the request from the defendants was being made "to embarrass" his client.
Austin Newport, the contractor who renovated Flatley’s Co Cork mansion after a fire in 2016, estimates its legal costs could top €1.2 million and allegedly fears that Flatley does not have the means to pay.
And the defendants involved in underwriting and insurance claim their legal costs could soar as high as €1.6 million and will also tell the court Flatley may not be able to pay those costs should he lose his case.
In the case, Flatley has claimed Castlehyde is no longer safe to live in following the €4 million worth of allegedly defective remediation works.
The dancer, who is battling cancer, claims those works did not deal with toxic ‘carcinogenic’ PVC residue or chloride contamination caused by smoke damage from the fire, which he said was present on the walls and furniture of the property.
He claims he needs €30 million to make the property safe for him and his family.
The defendants, who all deny the claims, are expected to make their applications for security for costs on July 3. The purpose is to make Flatley lodge in court the €2.8 million in potential costs for the defendants, in advance of the case being heard in full.
Mr. Hudson said the application was unwarranted, as Flatley was clearly a "man of means."
He said his client had a substantial property asset in the form of Castlehyde, which he said had been valued at more than €20 million.
Mr. Hudson also told the court that the figures put forward by the defendants were "pie in the sky." Last month, Flatley saved Castlehyde after repaying a multi-million-euro loan he had taken out against it.
The 66-year-old had used his Fermoy property as security for the €5.9 million loan, taken out by his company Blackbird Film Productions, which made the spy movie "Blackbird," starring Flatley himself, in 2023.
However, Dublin-based Novellus Finance alleged that the company defaulted on the loan – a claim Flatley denied.
As a result of the alleged default, Novellus appointed a receiver over the property. The court heard that Flatley had secured a refinance deal and that the money had been transferred to Novellus.
Business tycoons Luke Comer and Maurice Regan were said earlier this year to be poised to help Flatley and Blackbird Film Productions redeem the loan.
Flatley reportedly put up part of his whiskey business, Flatley Whiskey, as collateral for the new loan.
*This article was originally published on Extra.ie.
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