In these proceedings the plaintiff ("Wicklow") seeks orders under s. 58 of the Waste Management Act, 1996 (as amended) ("the Acts") against all of the defendants arising from an allegation that the defendants were involved in unlawful actions in relation to the deposition of waste on lands at Whitestown, Co. Wicklow. The defendants in this application sought to stay local authority enforcement proceedings against them, pending the completion of criminal proceedings against them in relation to unlawful waste disposal, on the grounds that it would be prejudicial to their criminal case. The judge refused the stay and found that given the nature of the enforcement, interference with the right to silence was proportionate. There is no absolute rule to stay civil proceedings to allow criminal proceedings in relation to the same matter to come on first.
In the context of this application it is important to note that the Directors were, it would appear, at all material times, directors of Dean Waste. The claim as against the directors is on the basis of a contention that they, as such directors, have a "fallback" liability on the basis of the "polluter pays" principle and having regard to the decision of O'Sullivan J. in Wicklow Co. Co. -v- Fenton (No. 2) [2002] 4 I.R. 44.