A High Court judge has refused former Castleblayney Mart director Arthur Connell Nugent an application that would have effectively prevented his trial from going ahead.

Castleblayney Mart went into liquidation on 9 April 2018, when it was revealed the mart had also been operating without the required licence and left a number of farmers out of pocket.

Some 78 farmers are seeking compensation to the value of €600,000 from the Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA) compensation fund, after the mart went into liquidation in 2018.

The mart operated under the name Edward Paul Nugent Ltd. Arthur Connell Nugent was the director of the company and he is now locked in a court battle with the PSRA for operating in Castleyblayney Mart without an in-date auctioneering licence.

Nugent told the court that there was a lack of evidence and that proceedings were out of time.

However, Justice Barr maintained the present application had been brought within the time and refused to prevent the trial from going ahead.

The PSRA has placed claims from the fund on hold until a High Court decision is made on the case and declined to comment as the case is ongoing.