The legal action being taken by Kenny Jacobs against the daa, aimed at allowing him to return to work, will be heard next month.
Mr Jacobs, who is currently suspended from his role as chief executive of the operator of Dublin Airport and Cork Airport, initiated the proceedings against his employer earlier this month.
He is seeking an order restraining a disciplinary investigation from proceeding and an order lifting his suspension from his position by the board of directors of the daa last month.
Padraic Lyons SC, for Mr Jacobs, told the High Court today that the daa had filed an affidavit in response to his client’s affidavit and that a replying affidavit has also been filed by his client.
He said subject to availability, the parties in the case were hoping the case could be listed for hearing on Thursday, 5 February and Friday, 6 February.
Mr Lyons told the court that the parties are agreed that it will be necessary to provide two further affidavits, which “hopefully would be much shorter than those exchanged to date.”
He said the sides are proposing to allow the daa to deliver a replying affidavit by 10pm on Monday, 26 January.
He told the court a further affidavit in reply from Mr Jacobs and legal submissions would be filed by 6pm on Thursday, 29 January, with the daa to file legal submissions on 3 February.
Mr Lyons said while it was “quite a compressed timescale,” he told Mr Justice Brian Cregan that the parties can meet the timeline set out.
On that basis, the judge agreed to the request for case to be heard on 5 February and 6 February.
The High Court was previously told that an investigation into Mr Jacobs’ conduct will be paused while his application for interlocutory injunctions is being heard.
Kenny Jacobs was previously cleared of two allegations by an inquiry headed by senior counsel Mark Connaughton.
In an earlier affidavit submitted to the High Court, he said a further 20 allegations were being lined up against him in order to secure a particularly unfavourable decision against him in the proposed investigation.
Kelley Smith SC had been appointed to carry out a new investigation into the fresh complaints.
According to Mr Jacobs’ written evidence to the court, the Connaughton investigation examined allegations against him of “sexist, misogynistic, racist, homophobic and ageist behaviour” in comments to or about employees and found them to be baseless.
He also described, in written evidence before the High Court, allegations that he had been responsible for suicidal ideation by employees as false and unjustifiably made.
The suspended daa CEO further denied allegations of having interfered with procurement processes by the state-owned company.
Kenny Jacobs was suspended from his role as CEO on 15 December, after being presented with the list of 20 complaints by the board.
It follows months of wrangling between Mr Jacobs and the daa board of directors.
An exit package had been agreed between the daa and Mr Jacobs in mid-September.
However, the package was not signed off by Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien and Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers.
