A High Court judge has directed the Parades Commission to hand over internal communications as part of a legal challenge to restrictions on the Drumcree parade in Portadown.

Mr Justice McAlinden told the court he intends to treat the case as a significant parading judgment and to resolve the decades-old dispute definitively. He asked Portadown District LOL No 1 if they would wait for a substantive ruling rather than press for immediate disclosure, and the lodge agreed to postpone any attempt to walk the traditional route until after the judgment, which is expected in August.

A district lodge spokesperson said the decision represented more progress than had been made in the past 27 years. The legal application, brought by individual members and not the lodge itself, sought permission for a silent parade of 10 people. The spokesperson said its purpose was to demonstrate what they called the Commission's obstinacy and unreasonableness, but stressed it was not a concession.

Carla Lockhart, the DUP MP for Upper Bann, who attended the hearing, described the day as highly significant. She said the court's order for disclosure and cross-examination of evidence meant the Commission's decision-making would face a level of judicial scrutiny not seen in almost three decades. Ms Lockhart highlighted the judge's emphasis on dialogue and praised the legal team and the Portadown brethren for their perseverance.

Loyalist activist Jamie Bryson, part of the legal team, called the development enormous for the Orange order members who have waited 27 years. Mr Justice McAlinden thanked Ms Lockhart for her attendance and commended the legal team, which includes John Larkin KC, Emma McIlveen BL and Mr Bryson.

The Drumcree dispute centres on the annual Orange Order parade from Drumcree Church, which has been subject to Parades Commission restrictions since the late 1990s. The legal action is one of the most significant challenges to the Commission's determinations in recent years.