Paul Egan SC

Paul Egan SC, a senior consultant at Mason Hayes & Curran LLP and chair of the government’s Company Law Review Group, said providing for continued access for journalists “cannot undo the harm the ECJ has done”.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) last month ruled that provisions in the Fifth EU Anti-Money Laundering Directive which require member states to provide public access to information on the beneficial ownership of companies are invalid.

It held that public access to information on beneficial ownership constitutes a serious interference with the fundamental rights to respect for private life and to the protection of personal data, and this interference is neither limited to what is strictly necessary nor proportionate to the objective pursued.

Public access to Ireland’s Register of Beneficial Ownership (RBO) has been suspended since the ruling.

Mr Egan has raised concerns about the ruling’s benefit to those “who advocate culture of secrecy of information”.

“The ability of journalists to access this information is couched in terms that those that ‘are connected with the prevention and combating of money laundering and terrorist financing have a legitimate interest in accessing information on beneficial ownership’,” he said.

“What about the legitimate public interest in knowing the individuals who might be profiting from significant State contracts? What about reporting on matters of public interest such as conflicts of interest in major companies?

“The judgment opens the opportunity to those who may try to intimidate those who might seek and publish their information. A libel suit or a judicial review is but one disclosure away.”

Mr Egan added: “As a start, we need to look at immunity from legal liability for those who disclose beneficial ownership of limited companies.”