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Omagh families defend £1m legal bill for civil case against suspects
By JILLY BEATTIE and ALAN ERWIN

MICHAEL Gallagher yesterday hit out at reports that the Omagh families had a bust-up with their lawyers over a £1million legal bill.
Mr Gallagher, whose son Aidan was killed in the 1998 bomb, is leading the battle for compensation from five alleged members of the Real IRA.
And so far the legal fees for the unprecedented civil action have amounted to £997.016.
Mr Gallagher said: "We have no argument with our lawyers - none. There have been reports that we've had a fallout with them but that is simply not the case. It's upsetting and damaging that anyone would claim that.
"Our lawyers are doing a great job and we're very grateful for their hard work and dedication. And we would appeal to the public to continue to support our ground-breaking case."
But he admitted he would be seeking reassurances when he meets his legal team on Thursday, although he stressed there was nothing unusual in that.
He said: "I have no reason to believe this meeting will not, at times, be challenging. We always ask difficult questions. As clients of a serious civil action, we have to.
"This is an incredibly expensive matter but it is something we must pursue for the sake of justice.
"We are very grateful to the public for their financial support and it's important that they know the money is being well spent."
The campaign is being funded by cash from the public, film stars and celebrities including Formula One racer Eddie Irvine and actor Liam Neeson.
The expenses have included solicitors' and barristers' fees and the huge investigation to prepare for the court hearing planned for Belfast's High Court next Easter.
Travel expenses too have created a dent in the fund as the families' representatives visited the US and London to raise awareness of their fight for justice. On Thursday Mr Gallagher will travel to London to meet the lawyers for a regular update on the progress of the case.
The families are represented by H2O, a London-based firm that has been giving the families their legal expertise at less than the going rate.
It has gathered a top team for the case including Lord Brennan QC, a former head of the British bar and head of Matrix Chambers, which employs Cherie Blair.
Group lawyer Jason McCue has also engaged Counsel Brett Lockhart and David McMillan, both from Northern Ireland.
A statement issued by H2O and the relatives yesterday insisted a huge amount of research and hard work had been put into pursuing the case.
It said: "As we can all see from the tens of millions of pounds spent on tribunals in the Republic of Ireland and the Saville Inquiry, going to law is not cheap.
"We are deeply grateful to all those donors who have enabled us to come to this stage when writs have been served."
If the families' legal action is successful the five accused - Liam Campbell, 38, Michael McKevitt, 50, Seamus Daly. 33, Seamus McKenna, 49, and Colm Murphy, 51 - could be forced to pay out millions in compensation.