The Mahon Tribunal will ask the High Court to compel The Irish Times to reveal its source for leaked information about payments to the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern.
Editor of The Irish Times Geraldine Kennedy and journalist Colm Keena appeared before the Tribunal last Friday but refused to answer its questions about the source of the leak.
They also said that relevant documents were destroyed after the Tribunal had made a production order.
Following the Tribunal's announcement this afternoon, Ms Kennedy said it remained her primary duty to protect the newspaper's source.
