A FORMER TRAINEE priest has launched High Court proceedings against two more newspapers.

Conor Gannon, who is being represented by Thomas A Walsh & Co solicitors in Kilkenny, issued the proceedings against Irish Examiner Limited on 30 April and against Evening Echo Limited on 1 May.

The Irish Examiner and the Evening Echo, which was recently rebranded as The Echo, are both based in Cork. They were bought by the Irish Times in July 2018.

It’s understood the legal action relates to articles which claimed two unnamed seminarians were sent home from the Pontifical Irish College in Rome last year.

An article on the topic first appeared in the Irish Times in May 2018 and was then reported by a number of other media outlets.

Gannon issued legal proceedings against Independent News and Media, which publishes a number of newspapers including the Irish Independent, in February.

He issued legal proceedings against the Irish Times last May and against Independent Star Limited, which publishes the Irish Daily Star, last July.

Gannon launched a High Court action against News Group Newspapers, a subsidiary of News Corp which publishes The Sun, in October.

‘Excessive alcohol consumption’

In May 2018, the Irish Catholic reported that one of the men in question was taking legal action to clear his good name over “widespread lurid allegations” which he denied.

One source told the newspaper the seminarians had only been “disciplined over concerns around excessive alcohol consumption”.

“It is also claimed that both men were not dismissed from the college, as reported in the media, but left of their own accord,” the article notes.

Thomas & Co Solicitors are not in a position to comment on the legal proceedings. TheJournal.ie has contacted the Irish Examiner, the Echo and the Catholic Communications Office for comment.

Comments are closed due to ongoing legal proceedings.