A solicitor being prosecuted in the Nolan Transport pension misappropriation court case has consented to a judgment against him, according to The Irish Times.

The haulage company’s former solicitor, Ciaran Desmond, has consented to a judgment against him for the misappropriation of €6.9m of the company’s pension funds.

This brings an end to the case against Desmond, but the paper reported that other lines of proceedings may continue today, Wednesday 11 May.

Desmond said in a statement, which was presented to the court, that the scheme which led to the alleged loss of pension funds was originally designed to shelter the funds from creditors who were calling in the Nolan family debts.

He said that it was necessary to disassociate the pension funds from the family to achieve this, and involved the setting up of a Swiss bank account, so the family’s debts could be bought at a discount at an entity not linked to the Nolan family.

Despite consenting to the judgment against him, Desmond denied any wrongdoing and blamed a number of others for the misappropriation of the funds. The case, which is being heard by Mr Justice Denis McDonald at the High Court in Ireland, began last week.

Members of the family of Nolan Transport of Wexford claim that their former solicitor Ciaran Desmond, formerly of McGuire Desmond Solicitors, Cork, and former financial adviser John Millett, of John Millett Independent Financial Advisors, Dublin, along with Mr Millett’s associated pension investment company, Pinnacle Pensioner Trustees, misappropriated their pension fund money.

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