Businessman Denis O'Brien is seeking an appeal directly to the Supreme Court after losing his High Court action over statements made in the Dáil about his banking affairs.

While Mr O'Brien's lawyers have lodged an appeal with the Court of Appeal against the High Court dismissal of his case, they are also applying to the Supreme Court for permission to bring an appeal directly to that court.

An appeal to the Supreme Court may only be brought if that court considers a case raises issues of general public importance meriting such an appeal.

Alternatively, it may permit an appeal to be brought if it considers that is necessary in the interests of justice.

If the court agrees to hear an appeal, it will publish a written determination outlining the reasons why, and the matter will then be moved from the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court.

In March, Mr O'Brien had asked the High Court to reprimand TDs Catherine Murphy and Pearse Doherty over their statements in the Dáil, which he said interfered with a court case he was taking against RTÉ.

But the court ruled the Constitution does not permit it to intervene in relation to utterances made in the Dáil.