Latest news with #BarneEstate
The Journal
5 days ago
- Business
- The Journal
Heir of Barne Estate 'shocked' by €50k brown envelope 'luck penny' offer from John Magnier
AN HEIR OF the 17th century Barne Estate, who John Magnier is suing over a collapsed deal for the prized farmland, has said he was 'shocked' by an 'untoward' offer of 'two envelopes stuffed with money' amounting to €50,000, which the bloodstock billionaire sent as a 'luck penny'. Richard Thomson-Moore was giving evidence at the High Court today in his defence relating to the failed €15m agreement. Magnier wants the court to enforce the deal he claims he sealed with Thomson-Moore in a handshake agreement for the 751-acre farm in Tipperary on 22 August 2023, which took place at Magnier's Coolmore home. The Magnier side has sued the Barne Estate, Thomson-Moore and three companies of IQEQ (Jersey) Ltd group, seeking to enforce the purported deal, which they say had been 'unequivocally' agreed. The Barne defendants say there was never any such agreement, as they needed the consent of the trustees to finalise any deal. They subsequently preferred to sell the estate to billionaire Maurice Regan for over €20m. Thomson-Moore has told the court that while a 'price' was agreed with Magnier for Barne, a 'deal' was not. After agreeing on €15, Barne and the Magniers entered into an exclusivity agreement stipulating that the estate would not permit itself or its representatives to solicit or encourage any expression of interest, inquiry or offer on the property from anyone other than Magnier between 31 August to 30 September 2023. The trustees who hold the estate initially decided to remain loyal to the Magnier offer and felt Regan's higher offer could be seen as 'provocative'. After the exclusivity period had ended, the trustees decided to go with Regan's offer. The court has heard that on 7 September 2023 – two weeks after Magnier claims he shook hands with Thomson-Moore on the deal for the Barne Estate – Magnier called to Barne with his son, JP. The Thomson-Moores have told the court their estate agent, John Stokes, who had walked out with the Magniers, returned to the house with two brown envelopes given to him by JP containing a total of €50,000 in cash – €25,000 in each. Thomson-Moore told the court that he did not interrogate Stokes about the purpose of the envelopes and that Stokes explained their offering as a 'luck penny'. A 'luck penny' is an amount of money given by a buyer to the seller after a deal is done to bring good luck. Advertisement The Magnier side have told the court that the money was a token of 'appreciation' to the Thomson-Moores for letting the Magnier side onto the land before any sale was finalised. The Magnier side were ultimately gazumped by US-based construction magnate Regan, who offered a final €22.25m, and was made the preferred bidder. Regan is not a party to the case. At the High Court today, Thomson-Moore said the delivery of the money to their Barne home caused him 'shock' and he felt the offer of 'envelopes stuffed with cash' was 'untoward'. The money was later returned by the Thomson-Moores. Thomson-Moore told defence barrister Niall Buckley SC that a guide price of €13.5m had been advertised by the selling agents, which he thought was underpriced. He said he believed the property to be worth between €17.5m and €20m based on a comparator property in Kildare. Thomson-Moore said that Magnier's retort to this valuation was 'slightly hostile' before an offer of €15m was accepted by the Thomson-Moores at the Coolmore kitchen meeting. Caren Geoghegan SC, for the Magniers, asked Thomson-Moore about lists drawn up detailing the contents of the Barne mansion and asked why there were two lists – one 'complete' list with a separate incomplete list going to the trustees of the estate. Thomson-Moore said that after the Magnier offer, he was in talks organising an auction of the contents of Barne with Mealy's auction house. Geoghegan put it to Thomson-Moore that his intention at this time was to give one list to the trustees that did not disclose all the items in the house. She put it to him that his intent was to not disclose 'high-value items' to the trustees of the estate, which he denied. 'There is no ambiguity about the intention,' said Geoghegan, 'a complete list and then a separate list for trustees.' Thomson-Moore said 'it didn't happen' but added: 'that is what it looks like, though, yes'. The case continues before Mr Justice Max Barrett. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Examiner
11-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Estate got loan to fight legal proceedings over land deal with Magniers
The wife of a man being sued by John Magnier over the purported sale of a Co Tipperary estate to him has told the High Court how they had to get a commercial loan to fight the proceedings over the collapsed land deal. Anna Thomson-Moore told the High Court the stress and impact of the proceedings initiated against them was "enormous". She said it also delayed the family's plans to move to her native Australia to attend to the health needs of their son, who needs around-the-clock care. Billionaire Mr Magnier wants the court to enforce a €15m deal he claims he agreed with Richard Thomson-Moore in a hand-shake deal for 751 acres of the land in Co Tipperary on August 22, 2023, at Mr Magnier's Coolmore home. In her evidence on Friday, Ms Thomson-Moore told barrister Martin Hayden that on September 7, 2023 — two weeks after the claimed handshake deal — Mr Magnier called to Barne Estate with his son, JP, and met with the Thomson-Moores, who told Mr Magnier that they had to work through tax issues and involve the trustees of the estate to complete any deal. Ms Thomson-Moore said that at the end of that conversation, their estate agent, John Stokes, who had walked out with the Magniers, returned to the house with two brown envelopes given to him by JP containing a total of €50,000 in cash — €25,000 in each — about which she felt "uncomfortable" and told Mr Stokes this. Ms Thomson-Moore told Mr Hayden that the money was put in their safe and that the following morning they decided to return the money as Ms Thomson-Moore was now "very uncomfortable" with the situation. The Magnier side have told the court that the money was a token of "appreciation" to the Thomson-Moores for letting the Magnier side onto the land before any sale was finalised. The Magnier side were ultimately gazumped by Irish-born, US-based construction magnate Maurice Regan, who offered €22.25m, and was made the preferred bidder. Mr Regan is not a party to the case. The Magnier side has sued the Barne Estate, Mr Thomson-Moore and three companies of IQEQ (Jersey) Ltd group, seeking to enforce the purported deal, which they say had been "unequivocally" agreed. The Barne defendants say there was never any such agreement, as they needed the consent of the trustees to finalise any agreement, and subsequently they preferred to sell the estate to Mr Regan. Barne Estate has been held for the benefit of Richard Thomson-Moore and others by a Jersey trust. Mr Magnier claims that the deal had been agreed at the kitchen meeting and that there had been no mention of it being subject to trustee approval, which he has said to the court on numerous occasions. Ms Thomson-Moore told the High Court that Mr Magnier was told a number of times prior to the alleged deal that any agreement was subject to the consent of the trustees. Exclusivity agreement Both sides entered into an exclusivity agreement from August 31 to September 30, 2023, stipulating that the estate would not permit itself or its representatives to solicit or encourage any expression of interest, inquiry or offer on the property from anyone other than Mr Magnier. However, during September 2023, Ms Thomson-Moore sad Mr Regan had offered around €20m for the estate but the trustees recommended honoring the exclusivity agreement with Mr Magnier. Ms Thomson-Moore said she was "frustrated" that the trustees were not looking at the higher offer at all. After the expiry of the exclusivity deal, she said that there was a "flurry" of calls in early October, 2023, during which time Mr Stokes told the Thomson-Moores that Mr Magnier had told the estate agent he would take the matter to court and "tie this up for years and millions in litigation". Ms Thomson-Moore said a commercial loan was taken out by the defendants under Barne Estate Ltd in order to provide liquidity to defend the Magnier action. "We did not have the means to defend these proceedings without a loan. "I think it is important to have access to justice and we were being steamrolled into proceedings because of a lack of cash and it would not be fair. "It felt like an onslaught of proceedings that kicked off very quickly," she told the court. The case continues before Mr Justice Max Barrett.
Irish Examiner
10-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Witness weeps as she tells High Court of decision to sell Barne Estate
The wife of a man being sued by bloodstock billionaire John Magnier over the purported sale of a Co Tipperary estate, broke down in tears in the witness box at the High Court as she told of the decision to sell the estate so that the family could move to Australia because of their child's healthcare. Anna Thomson-Moore's husband, Richard is being sued by Mr Magnier, who claims that he had agreed a handshake deal with the Thomson-Moores for Barne Estate in Co Tipperary worth €15m in August 2023. Ms Thomson-Moore told the High Court on Thursday that her five-year old son, who has cerebral palsy and epilepsy, is in need of 24-hour care, cannot walk or crawl and is non verbal and that this was behind the decision to sell the Co Tipperary estate. Ms Thomson-Moore told her barrister, Martin Hayden SC, that she did not want her son to be "defined by his disabilities" but that his condition meant the family had chosen to move to Australia where Ms Thomson-Moore has a large family that could support her son. Anna Thomson-Moore told the High Court her family decided to sell Barne Estate in Tipperary so they could move to Australia because of their child's healthcare. Picture: Collins Courts Ms Thomson-Moore was emotional when she described her thoughts as to how Teddy would be cared for after she and her husband, as "older" parents, died or should anything happen to them. She said her son was a "delightfully happy and inquisitive child" but that he had a number of diagnoses and his conditions meant that he could not feed or wash himself, nor was he toilet trained and required 24-hour care. She said her son was not capable of doing things other five-year-olds would be expected to do and moving to Australia was decided as healthcare services for children in her area in Co Tipperary were under-resourced, difficult to avail of and over subscribed. Businessman John Magnier at the High Court in May. File picture: Collins Courts Ms Thomson-Moore said that there was a national scheme available in her homeland with individualised budgets for children with her son's diagnoses but that the family would have to physically be in Australia to avail of the services there. Ms Thomson-Moore said that Mr Magnier had visited Barne before the purported handshake deal of August 22, 2021, and had asked if the family was being put under pressure by a bank to sell. A trained lawyer, Ms Thomson-Moore said she told Mr Magnier that it was a family decision to sell the estate and said this decision involved the trustees of the estate. Mr Hayden asked Ms Thomson-Moore if Mr Magnier expressed any surprise upon learning of the involvement of trustees in the estate to which Ms Thomson-Moore said "no". The Magnier side claims a deal was struck for Barne Estate, which the Magniers believed they had shook hands on in August 2023 for €15m. However, the Magnier side were ultimately gazumped by Irish-born, US-based construction magnate Maurice Regan, who offered €22.25m. Barne Estate, Clonmel, Co Tipperary. The case centres on Mr Magnier's claim that Mr Regan engaged in a "full-frontal assault" on Mr Magnier's claimed deal to buy the 751-acre tract and that Barne estate reneged on the deal. Barne Estate has been held for the benefit of Richard Thomson-Moore and others by a Jersey trust. The Magnier side has sued the Barne Estate, Mr Thomson-Moore and three companies of IQEQ (Jersey) Ltd group, seeking to enforce the purported deal, which they say had been "unequivocally" agreed. The Barne defendants say there was never any such agreement, as they needed the consent of trustees to finalise any agreement and subsequently they preferred to sell the estate to Mr Regan. Mr Regan is not a party to the case. The case continues before Mr Justice Max Barrett.
The Journal
21-06-2025
- Business
- The Journal
John Magnier advisor denies being 'kept in the loop' about Tipperary land owners' tax affairs
A SENIOR ADVISOR to bloodstock billionaire John Magnier has denied that he was 'kept in the loop' regarding the tax affairs of the owners of a large tract of land in Tipperary that his boss wanted to buy. Eddie Irwin, the financial advisor at the Coolmore Stud, which Magnier founded, rejected a description of him by counsel for Barne Estate, Martin Hayden SC, as Magnier's 'fixer' and 'right-hand man'. He said Coolmore did not use 'catchphrases or fancy titles' but agreed with counsel that he would be called to work on projects if things went 'wrong'. Irwin, who has 40 years' experience working with Magnier, was called in to aid in securing the Barne Estate deal, which the Magniers believed they had shaken hands on in August 2023 for €15m. However, the Magnier side was ultimately gazumped by Irish-born, US-based construction magnate Maurice Regan, who offered €22.25m. The case centres on Magnier's claim that Regan engaged in a 'full-frontal assault' on the claimed deal to buy the 751-acre tract and that Barne Estate reneged on the deal. The Estate has been held for the benefit of Richard Thomson-Moore and others by a Jersey trust. At the High Court yesterday, Irwin said he met with the benefactor in September 2023 and contacted tax experts from KPMG after the family requested advice. A KPMG tax expert met with the Thomson-Moore family later in the month as a 'favour' to Coolmore, who were large clients of KPMG. Irwin did not attend that meeting, but allegedly sent a WhatsApp message to Magnier claiming that the Thomson-Moores were considering whether to retain the tax expert from KPMG, who was named in court. Advertisement He added that the expert had informed the Thomson-Moore family of what approach he recommended. He denied making an 'off-the-record' remark that the expert would keep him 'in the loop' in return for introducing him to the family. Irwin said that the wording of a WhatsApp message to Magnier, telling him 'off the record' about the family's intention to retain the man, was 'unfortunate' and that what he meant was for Magnier not to share the information. Irwin told counsel that the named expert was an 'innocent, decent and honourable' man, who was being 'defamed' in the court as someone who would keep him 'in the loop' on private tax matters. He said that he did have 'grave' concerns over the tax issue raised by the Thomson-Moore family at the time as it was just before the end of an exclusivity agreement and may not have been a genuine one. Irwin said he sought legal advice following the expiration of the agreement, on 23 September 2023, after he claimed that Regan had contacted Magnier's son-in-law 'angry and abusive' over the handshake deal and said he would outbid the pact by €5m. In early October 2023, with the exclusivity agreement now expired, the local estate agent involved in the sale told the Magniers that the Barne Estate had been subject to a €20m bid. The Magnier side then upped their bid to €16m with a separate, additional offering of €500,000 to establish a trust for a member of the Thomson-Moore family. Irwin said he was told by the auctioneer that the Thomson-Moore's were happy to accept the offer. But the Barne Estate solicitors never sent the contracts and the deal was never done. The Magnier side has sued the Barne Estate, Thomson-Moore and three companies of IQEQ (Jersey) Ltd group, seeking to enforce the purported deal, which they say had been 'unequivocally' agreed. The Barne defendants say there was never any such agreement, as they needed the consent of trustees to finalise any agreement, and subsequently they preferred to sell the estate to Regan, who is not a party to the case. The case continues before Mr Justice Max Barrett next month. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Examiner
20-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
High Court hears from John Magnier's 'right hand man' in multi million Barne Estate row
A senior advisor described as a "right-hand man" to bloodstock billionaire John Magnier, who is involved in a legal battle over the purported multi-million sale of a Tipperary estate that fell through, has told the High Court he was not secretly "kept in the loop" of the tax affairs of the vendors. Financial advisor at world-famous Coolmore Stud, Eddie Irwin also rejected a description of him by counsel for Barne Estate as Mr Magnier's "fixer"and "right hand man". Mr Irwin said Coolmore did not use "catchphrases or fancy titles" but agreed with counsel that he would be called to work on projects if things went "wrong". Mr Irwin, who has 40 years' experience working with Mr Magnier, was called in to aid in securing the Barne Estate deal which the Magniers believed they had shook hands on in August 2023 for €15m. However, the Magnier side were ultimately gazumped in being the preferred buyer by Irish-born, US-based construction magnate Maurice Regan, who offered €22.25m. The case centres on Mr Magnier's claim that Mr Regan engaged in a "full-frontal assault" on Mr Magnier's claimed deal to buy the 751-acre tract and that Barne estate reneged on the deal. Barne Estate has been held for the benefit of Richard Thomson-Moore and others by a Jersey trust. At the High Court on Friday, Mr Irwin said he met with Mr Thomson-Moore in early September 2023 and they contacted tax experts KPMG after the Thomson-Moore family requested tax liability advice. A KPMG tax expert met with the Thomson-Moores later in the month as a "favour" to Coolmore, who were large clients of KPMG. Mr Irwin did not attend that meeting but allegedly sent a WhatsApp message to Mr Magnier telling him "off the record" that the tax expert, who was named in court, allegedly told him that the Thomson-Moores were considering whether to retain KPMG and that the expert had informed the Thomson-Moores of what approach he recommended. Mr Irwin answering Martin Hayden, counsel for Barne Estate, denied he had an "off-the-record" report from the expert that, counsel alleged, would keep him "in the loop" in return for introducing the Thomson-Moores to KPMG. Mr Irwin said the wording of the WhatsApp message was an "aberration" and "unfortunate" and that he meant for Mr Magnier not to share information already known from previous meetings as it was a "private" and not for dissemination. Mr Irwin told Mr Hayden that the named expert was an "innocent, decent, and honourable" man, who was being "defamed" in the court as someone who would keep him "in the loop" on private tax matters. However, Mr Irwin said he did have "grave" concerns at the time that the tax issue raised by the Thomson-Moores was put forward just before the September 29, 2023, end of an exclusivity agreement and may not have been a genuine one. Mr Irwin told Mr Hayden that he was told by Mr Magnier that a week after the alleged handshake deal that his son-in-law, David Wachman, received a call from Mr Regan, who was "angry and abusive" about the purported sale. Mr Regan told Mr Wachman that he would outbid the Magnier side by €5m to prevent the deal going through, claimed Mr Irwin. After the expiration of the exclusivity agreement on September 29, 2023, Mr Irwin contacted Eugene McCague, a former partner at legal heavyweights Arthur Cox, who represent Coolmore in these proceedings, and sought legal advice should the matter be litigated. In early October 2023, with the exclusivity agreement now expired, the local estate agent involved in the sale, John Stokes, told the Magniers that the Barne Estate had been subject to a €20m bid. The Magnier side then upped their bid to €16m with a separate, additional offering of €500,000 to establish a trust for a member of the Thomson-Moore family. Mr Irwin said he was told by the auctioneer that the Thomson-Moore's were happy to accept the Magnier offer but the Barne Estate solicitors never sent the contracts and the deal was never done. The Magnier side has sued the Barne Estate, Mr Thomson-Moore, and three companies of IQEQ (Jersey) Ltd group, seeking to enforce the purported deal, which they say had been "unequivocally" agreed. The Barne defendants say there was never any such agreement, as they needed the consent of trustees to finalise any agreement and subsequently they preferred to sell the estate to Mr Regan. Mr Regan is not a party to the case. The case continues before Mr Justice Max Barrett next month.
