Bankrupt businessman Sean Quinn has stepped up efforts to defend himself in a multi-billion lawsuit with the former Anglo Irish Bank.

Quinn has now hired a team of lawyers to argue that he is entitled to represent himself personally in a court battle over loans worth in excess of $4billion.

The Fermanagh born businessman, once Ireland’s wealthiest citizen, believes he should be allowed to defend himself against claims that he is liable for some or all of the loans made by Anglo to Quinn group companies.

Now bankrupt, Quinn’s official assignee in bankruptcy has opted not to defend him in his family’s case against Anglo.

Only Judge Peter Kelly can decide if Quinn is entitled to act on his own behalf when his hearing goes before Dublin’s Commercial Court on Thursday.

Anglo has already claimed that Quinn cannot be represented in the full proceedings given the official assignee’s decision not to participate.

Last month Quinn told the Judge that he wanted to defend himself and claimed that Anglo had joined him to the case but now ‘doesn’t want me’.

“I was obviously a major part of the Anglo-Quinn situation over the past 10 years and I would have thought it was useful for the court to hear my views,” said Quinn.

Quinn’s wife Patricia and her five children are locked in a legal battle with Anglo, now called the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, and claim they should not be held liable for the massive loans because the bank issued the money in order to artificially inflate its own share price.

The bank has denied the claims. A date for the full hearing has yet to be fixed.

Justice Kelly was told on Monday that Quinn had instructed Corrigan Blake solicitors to make arguments on Thursday that he is entitled to personally represent himself.