Twenty people who have lived for several years in two Dublin properties have failed in their bid to overturn a High Court order requiring “persons unknown” to leave the properties.

The three judge Court of Appeal (COA) on Wednesday dismissed the occupants’ bid to appeal over the order granted to Pepper Finance Corporation DAC in November 2020.

A separate judgment is awaited from the High Court on Pepper's application for orders for attachment and committal to prison against various respondents over failure to leave the properties on foot of the November order.

Pepper has said it wants orders for attachment – arrest – of those respondents represented in court for the purpose of being brought before the court.

It has said the attachment orders should be stayed for a number of weeks to give the respondents a chance to make alternative arrangements.

 Businessman Jerry Beades is the registered owner, but not an occupant, of the mortgaged properties  at 31 Richmond Avenue, Fairview, and 21 Little Mary Street, Dublin 2, both made subject of High Court possession orders in 2008, affirmed by the Supreme Court in 2014.

The possession orders arose from default on loans made by IIB Bank and sold, respectively, to KBC Bank, Beltany Property Finance and, last August, to Pepper.

Pepper claims some €2.3m is outstanding on the loans and, as a result of the possession orders, the occupants, who include a number of Romanian nationals and two young children, cannot rely on lease or rental agreements between them and Mr Beades.

While some occupants claim to have paid rent over years to Mr Beades, there is no evidence, since the possession orders were made, that Mr Beades has paid rent to anyone, including Pepper, the High Court was previously told.

When the November order was made there was no appearance by the occupants. Twenty occupants have since been identified and they said they weren’t aware of the proceedings.