By Gordon Deegan

A judge ordered two Co. Clare farmers not go within 200 metres of a couple’s home in the county after hearing that the couple have been subject to alleged "bully-boy tactics".

At Ennis District Court, Judge Alec Gabbett imposed an interim civil restraining order on the two farmers, who are related to each other, after one of the applicants for the interim order told the court “they have put us in fear”.

After listening to the woman outline her evidence grounding the application for the interim restraining order in the witness box, Judge Gabbett said: “What you say is very valid. I think you are genuinely in fear.

"Sometimes what happens in these cases is that someone gets assaulted ultimately and that is very likely to be you.”

The woman agreed, saying: “That is where it is escalating to.”

Judge Gabbett told the female restraining order applicant: “These kinds of cases are actually very common in Clare and issues about rights of ways, walls and boundaries often lead to cases of assault so that is the concern I have for you.”

The judge granted the interim restraining order to the couple and it was the wife who gave sworn evidence from the witness box on behalf of the couple.

Asked by Judge Gabbett what has caused all of this as it is quite a serious order to grant, the woman said: “We have our assumptions. Ultimately he doesn’t want us there. He doesn’t want us in our home. He doesn’t want us driving in and out our driveway."

“They don’t want us to be there. They have threatened my Dad," she said.

“He is loitering, he is in the hedges, monitoring my movements and my family. He is gesturing. Standing with his hood up around our gateway. He has abandoned cars," the woman added.

The woman said that she and her husband have a small holding with sheep and a couple of calves which is surrounded on three quarters by lands owned by the farmer.

“The boundary seems smaller and smaller when someone is encroaching on you. The lands have been well fenced from our end and we have been very good at keeping our animals in.

“We have had periods of peace like when summons was issued initially. Since our last time in court things have slowly escalated and he is back to loitering, harassing my Dad, coming in and out and letting cattle into our land," she said.

“When I say cattle, they are quite substantial bulls in terms of size. We have a little child who plays in the fields. We know it is bully-boy tactics," she added.

The woman said that from the public road, “we have formalised the right of way across his lands” in order to access their home.

She said that there is an historical laneway that dates back to famine "and we own half of that and he has constantly stopped us from using it".

"He has no reason to be there. He has abandoned cars and we do feel that our movements are being monitored," she told the judge.

As part of the interim restraining order on the two farmers, Judge Gabbett has also ordered them not to impede the entry or exit of the applicants from their dwelling.

The application for the interim order was made on an ex parte basis by the couple where the other side was not in court to contest any of the allegations.

Judge Gabbett adjourned the case to this Wednesday (March 5) to Ennis District Court for the two farmers to attend and indicated that the case may be further adjourned for a hearing into the interim order later this month.