The Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement has begun proceedings in the High Court today to seek the disqualification as a company director of the former chief executive of National Irish Bank, Jim Lacey.
Counsel for the ODCE, Maurice Collins SC, outlined to the court the various findings of the High Court Inspector's Report into NIB published in 2004 which found 'a catastrophic failure of governance within the bank'.
The report examined issues arising from bogus non-resident accounts, the evasion of DIRT tax and the improper charging of fees and interest on customers' accounts.
Mr Lacey was chief executive of NIB from 1988 until 1994 and remained a director of the bank until 1997.
The cross-examination of Mr Lacey is not expected to take place until tomorrow at the earliest.
