by Matthew Austin , Pamela Fitzpatrick November-28-2023 in Commercial & Business
The High Court delivered its judgment in the judicial review proceedings taken by the University of Limerick and Plassey Trust Company Limited against Irish Water (Uisce Éireann) on 27 November 2023.
The judicial review proceedings were taken against Irish Water (Uisce Éireann) arising from its decision to reclassify the supply of water to the student accommodation as “non-domestic” supply, and therefore liable to water charges.
In finding in favour of the applicants, Ms Justice Bolger concluded that the university’s student accommodation satisfies the definition of a “dwelling” in the Water Services (2) Act, 2013 (as amended) and therefore the supply of water by Irish Water/Uisce Éireann to the university’s student accommodation, during the academic year, is the provision of water services to a “dwelling” within the meaning of the legislation . The legislation provides that Irish Water (Uisce Éireann) shall not charge for the provision of water services to a dwelling. The Judge found that Irish Water (Uisce Éireann) is not entitled to charge for the water provided to the university’s student accommodation within the statutory constraints of the level of use and the allocation of domestic allowances.
The Judge made a declaration that the units constituting of the student accommodation constitute dwellings within the meaning of the legislation. The matter has been put back to 11 December 2023 for the purposes of determining the final Orders to be made by the Court.
The University of Limerick and Plassey Trust Company Limited were represented in the case by Matthew Austin (Partner) and Pamela Fitzpatrick (Senior Associate) of Hayes solicitors, together with Micheál O’Connell SC and Nathan Reilly BL.
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About the Authors
Matthew Austin
Matthew is a partner in the Commercial & Business team and has considerable expertise in a range of practice areas, having acted for Irish and International clients in domestic and multi-jurisdictional issues. Matthew has advised in civil and administrative law disputes and in regulatory and advisory matters including insolvency/restructuring, IP, defamation and media law, competition and consumer protection and data protection.
Pamela Fitzpatrick
Pamela is a senior associate solicitor in the Commercial and Business team at Hayes solicitors. She specialises in commercial litigation and dispute resolution acting for financial institutions, private equity funds, private companies and individuals in a variety of matters including enforcement and recovery actions, landlord and tenant disputes and general litigation cases. Pamela also provides advice on a wide range of commercial and business law matters, including data protection law and the review and drafting of commercial contracts.