Mandate union executive brings court challenge claiming her suspension was over whistleblowing

High Court Reporter

A member of the national executive of the retail, bar and administrative workers' union, Mandate, is bringing a High Court challenge over a decision which she says prevents her from standing for re-election later this month.

Lorna Langan, a member of the Mandate national executive council (NEC) for the last two years, claims the decision to suspend her membership arose out of her attempts to highlight wrongdoing and malpractice within the union, over which a formal complaint has now been made to gardaí.

They include a claim by her that the NEC had been misled at an emergency meeting in June 2021 into approving an enhanced redundancy payment for a staff member in excess of €100,000.

She also said, in an affidavit, that she raised complaints that settlement offers made to officers and/or employees of Mandate, who had brought proceedings against the union, had not been made known to the NEC in a timely manner, resulting in significant unnecessary costs to the union.

She claimed that NEC voted on February 9th, 2025, to reject a financial settlement for a second employee but that decision was overturned by the NEC less than a week later, on February 13th. She said this was not lawful as the NEC itself cannot overturn an NEC decision.

She complained that individuals with undisclosed conflicts of interest participated in financial votes at the February 13th, 2025, meeting.

She further complained she was denied access to financial and contractual information, including the general secretary's remuneration, consultancy costs and settlement terms, in breach of union rules.

She also complained, in July 2025, to the Legal Services Regulatory Authority about the conduct of the union's solicitor.

She said in November 2024, she had attempted to distribute a document compiled by former union president, Denise Curran, along with a copy of a staff member's protected disclosure document. Rather than discuss the document, the NEC prevented its distribution and to allow her to read it out, she said.

Last March, she, Ms Curran and James Rabitte, made a formal written complaint to the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau alleging serious wrongdoing at the union.

With elections to a new NEC due to take place on April 27th at the union's biennial delegate conference, Ms Langan said she circulated her candidate profile to members as part of her campaign for re-election.

She said at an emergency NEC online meeting last February, following a request from some members of the union's staff that her profile not be circulated, the NEC decided to prevent its distribution without, she said, any regard to fair procedures or her entitlements.

Despite further attempts by her to have her profile circulated , it has been prevented while other candidates have had their profiles circulated, she said.

She has also lodged a claim with the Workplace Relations Commission under the Protected Disclosures Act.

On March 22nd, while she was in hospital, the NEC decided to suspend her, meaning she would not be entitled to contest the election. She was informed the suspension was to allow the union to investigate complaints from its staff.

On Wednesday, her barrister, Michael Kinsley, was granted short service of the proceedings on Mandate following a one-side only represented application in the High Court.

Counsel said that, in correspondence, the union said she had been lawfully suspended and was not entitled to any relief from the court.

Justice Oisín Qunn said the matter could come back to court on Friday.

In her proceedings, Langan claims the decision to exclude her from the election is unlawful, carried out unfairly and in bad faith and in breach of express provisions of the union rules.

She says the only power to suspend a person from membership arises in the context of a sanction following a full hearing and determination of a complaint.

As part of a pilot project BreakingNews.ie has used AI to suggest headline options for this article. The final headline was chosen and edited by BreakingNews.ie journalists. Find out more