Owner (94) says Dublin property taken over by unidentified occupants, court hears

High Court Reporter

The 94-year-old owner of a property on Dublin's North Circular Road is seeking High Court orders for the removal of unidentified people who he says are unlawfully occupying it.

Thomas Gunning, who has been living in accommodation for elderly people in west Dublin since 2022, is asking the court to order that those people vacate the property at 311 North Circular Road, remove all their possessions, and be prohibited from further trespassing.

The property was bequeathed in 2013 by Bernadette Gunning to Thomas and his three siblings, Agnes, Alocoque, Bernadette, and John. All three siblings died intestate and Thomas says he is the sole owner.

In an affidavit, he said the property has been unoccupied since 2022. His grandnephew, Rory Gunning, recently informed him persons unknown had broken in and are now occupying the property.

A handwritten note left by the occupants with a neighbour stated: "Hiya, nice to meet you. We just moved in next door you thinking this was an abandoned property. We have been cleaning up the place and gathering everything belonging to the Gunning family."

Thomas Gunning said it was clear they were unlawfully interfering with the property and his possessions and had no permission to do so.

"This is a cause of significant stress to me", he said.

His solicitors had written to them calling on them to vacate but there was no response, he said.

The court heard on Wednesday that it has not been possible to identify the individuals or find out how many of them there are.

Mr Justice Brian Cregan granted Mr Gunning's lawyers permission to serve notice of the proceedings on the defendants following a one side only represented (ex parte) application.

He said the papers could be served by being put through the letterbox, accompanied by a plain English letter from the Gunning solicitor informing them that the proceedings are issued and are back before the court this Friday morning.