SURVEYMAY 2020

DETAILED LISTING OF IRELAND’S TOP COMMERCIAL LAW FIRMS AND

THE VIEWS OF MANAGING PARTNERS

Law FirmsWho’s Who

44 BUSINESS PLUS MAY 2020

Accustomed to interviewingbusiness leaders in plush,mahogany-lined offices, it’s a bit ofa climb-down to instead quiz them

over the phone, as they perch on acorner of the kitchen table or strugglefor space while shoehorned into the boxroom. Welcome to the world of Covid-19, where entire organisations –some hundreds strong – have dispersedthe workforce to their homes.Law firms are perhaps among the

most successful of these diasporasbecause when the lockdown came, mosthad been ready for years – they justdidn’t know it in advance. The genesis ofagile working was not altruistic. Manyfirms found it difficult to retain keyspecialised lawyers when they reachedthe childbearing stage. Procedures andIT systems were devised so they couldwork from home yet stay on the payroll.Additionally, as ever more firms joinedinternational alliances and executivesoften worked on assignment abroad,they too required remote workingcapability.Alan Murphy, managing partner at

Eversheds Sutherland, says that asCovid-19 gripped the country he wasable to move 80% of the firm’semployees in Dublin and Belfast toremote working within a week, enablingadequate social distancing in the office.The balance moved to their homes thefollowing week.Many firms, including William Fry,

switched to remote or agile workingeven before the government called for it.Managing partner Bryan Bourke was inWashington prior to the St Patrick’s Daycelebrations. “We took a decision to shutdown in the course of that week and wehave been working from home sincethen,” he says. The lockdown was an extension of a

process that was already ongoing, giventhat so many lawyers work from home atleast part of the week, according toGayle Bowen, partner and Head ofOffice Dublin at Pinsent Masons.Separately, the process had already beenunderway at Arthur Cox the week priorto the government lockdownannouncement. “On the previousMonday and Wednesday I had asked

two of our five departments to startworking remotely to make sure that ITsystems were functioning as they should.When the lockdown was ordered, 95%of us were remote and have been since,”says managing partner Geoff Moore.The school closures also triggered

some early decisions. “We movedimmediately so that anybody who hadchild-minding responsibilities couldwork from home,” says NicholasButcher, managing partner of theMaples Group office in Dublin. “On theFriday of the announcement we movedto a full, office-wide working from homearrangement.”Before dispersing staff to their homes,

Ronan Daly Jermyn operated asophisticated social distancing project.“We divided each of our three sites intotwo completely separate teams,”managing partner Richard Martin

explains. “I was on team X, whichworked Monday, Wednesday and Fridayfrom home, and on Tuesday andThursday we were in the office. Thefollowing week, we worked Tuesday andThursday from home. Team Y workedalternate days to us. The two teams werenot allowed contact, even socially. Theynever overlapped in the office and thethree offices were deep cleaned everynight to make way for the other teamthe following day. However, we hadpeople who were getting very anxious, sowe sent everybody home to work.”At Matheson, over the past two years

the firm has been investing in agileworking kit such as laptops, etc. “Wewere able to mobilise very quickly to getthings up and running from home,” saysmanaging partner Michael Jackson.Gayle Bowen says her firm had an

early heads-up from colleagues in Asia,

BP SURVEY COMMERCIAL LAW

Lawyers In Lockdown

Workplace restrictions have played to the agile workingsetups of many law firms, but they are also causing

workload headaches, writes Gerry Byrne

ROLLINGNEWS.IE

NICHOLAS BUTCHERManaging PartnerMaples Group

ACTIVITY 2019 was a very strong year forthe Maples Group, both in Ireland and acrossthe globe. We reached a significant milestonein the group’s history having welcomed our2,000th employee in November 2019. Inaddition we completed a complex rebrandwhich saw Maples and Calder and MaplesFSconsolidate under a single brand, the MaplesGroup.

All of our practice areas are highlycomplementary and form a service network torespond to the needs of our internationalclients. We therefore devote proportionalresources to each practice area.COMPETITION The legal landscape is in a

huge period of flux, with a number of newmarket entrants. This competition raises thebar, bringing out the competitive spirit in ourlawyers and I am confident we will continue toimprove our offering, even in these particularlyturbulent times.

We initially entered the Irish market in 2006and have been successfully operating here for14 years now. With this experience, I amconfident we are equipped to navigate the

inevitable challenges that we will face in theweeks and months ahead. Ireland, along withmost of the world, is in the grip of the Covid-19crisis. It remains to be seen what impact thisunprecedented event will ultimately have onthe Irish legal market, but it is almost certainto herald changes.

There is no denying it is a highly competitive

Irish legal market, but at the Maples Group welisten to our clients’ needs in order to createnovel and tailored solutions for them. We alsoplace a huge emphasis on cultivating strongand long-lasting relationships with our clients,which we believe is fundamental to top-tierservice and success.USP To be the best law firm in the market,

you need the best people – simple as that. Wefocus on a very select number of practiceareas, which means our lawyers have deepsectoral knowledge in their respective fields. Ifwe are not going to be the best at something,we simply do not do it.

Our people need to be fulfilled to excel. Thatis why we place a huge emphasis in ensuringour people are satisfied professionally, as Ibelieve that a positive culture enhances andimproves client service. Over the past year, wehave spent a huge amount of time workingwith our HR team to improve our maternity,paternity and parental leave policies.

We recently introduced a range of flexibleand agile working policies as we accommodateemployees’ changing needs, and invest in thefuture of our people. All of our lawyers andprofessionals have the necessary capabilitiesto enable them to work effectively on a remotebasis, with secure access to relevant internalplatforms, as required.

JOHN WHITEManaging PartnerBeauchamps

ACTIVITY The firm has seen positive growthacross all areas of the business up until thecurrent quarter, especially in our traditionalcore strengths of banking, commercial propertyand corporate. We have also become a marketleader in the social housing sector, workingwith all parties across the range of servicesrequired to deliver many landmark housingprojects. We are immensely proud of theintegral role our award-winning team, led bypartner Fidelma McManus, is playing in helpingto increase availability of housing stock.COMPETITION One of the things

Beauchamps is known for in the market is itstraditional value for money, with a first classservice but at reasonable rates, and that won’tchange. There is a huge amount of competitionin the marketplace and clients generally lookfor alternative fee solutions beyond hourlycharge-out rates. We believe that we operate

lean teams so we try to keep costs for theclient low. OUTLOOK There is no doubt we are living in

highly uncertain times, with the dual macrothreats of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemicrequiring a highly flexible approach to workingand business strategy. Businesses have andwill need to continue to evolve quickly duringthese changing times. Real human tragedy is atthe heart of the pandemic, but the nature ofthe uncertain economic threat it poses clearlyrequires considerable caution for any business. USP We actively foster and recruit lawyers

for their positive character and ability to co-operate with each other, as well as theirability to provide practical and clear advice toclients. While we retain our objectivity asadvisors, we commit fully to achieving ourclients’ goals and aims.

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BP SURVEY COMMERCIAL LAW

‘The pandemic economic threatrequires considerable caution for any business’

‘To be the best lawfirm, you need thebest people’

Survey contined on page 62

DILLON EUSTACE Solicitors: 88Mng. Partner: Mark ThorneThe firm has a focus on assetmanagement and investmentfunds, banking and capitalmarkets, corporate and M&A,employment, financial services,insurance, litigation and disputeresolution, real estate andtaxation. According to MontereyInsight, Dillon Eustace advisesmore Irish funds than any otherlaw firm. The key lateral hires in2019 were partner Keith Waine(financial regulation), Fiona O’Neill(property) and Shane Coveney,who joined the expanding ETFteam.

WALKERS IRELANDSolicitors: 65Mng. Partner: Garry FergusonWalkers Ireland is the Irish arm ofa ten-office global law firm, andits core focus is structuredfinance. Notable recent lateralhires include Joanna Taylor asSenior VP of Walkers ProfessionalServices, and Thomas Leyland, apartner hire to the Insolvency andDispute Resolution practice.Notable recent advices includeacting as counsel for GoldmanSachs on the River Green Finance2020 securitisation, the first evergreen European commercialmortgage backed securitytransaction.

PINSENT MASONSSolicitors: 64 Partner, Head of Office Dublin: Gayle BowenThe international law firmestablished an office in Dublin in2018 and expanded its solicitorcount in Dublin by 32 in 2019.Lateral hires have included MichaelFinn from Matheson; NaoiseHarnett and Niall Campbell fromWilliam Fry; Garrett Monaghanfrom Arthur Cox; Kevin Collinsfrom Eversheds Sutherland; andAnn Lalor from Whitney Moore. Inthe M&A arena, the firm advisedNH Hotel Group in its acquisition,alongside German investment fundDeka, of the Marker Hotel in Dublinfrom a group of private investors.The deal involved seven of the

firm’s offices and 30 fee earnerscontributing.

EUGENE F COLLINS Solicitors: 64Mng. Partner: Mark WalshThe firm’s main practice areas arecorporate, banking, disputeresolution and property. The firmtraces its roots back 1893 and isconsistently ranked by legaldirectories Chambers Europe,Chambers Global and the Legal500. In February 2020, PaulDempsey was appointed partner indispute resolution department.The firm says that with thedeparture of the UK from the EUthere is now the potential for theIrish legal system to be regardedas the jurisdiction of choice forcontract dispute resolution.

LK SHIELDS Solicitors: 62Mng. Partner: Emmet ScullyThe firm is renowned for its workin mergers and acquisitions andwas ranked in eighth place by dealcount for Ireland in the 2019Mergermarket league table. “Wehave a reputation for providingpartner-driven, accessible anddecisive input and work to buildin-depth relationships with ourclients, learning about theirbusiness and providing them withthe guidance, support andstrategic solutions they require to

achieve their aims and meet theirobjectives,” says the firm.

HAYES Solicitors: 61Mng. Partner: David Phelan The firm offers expertise inbusiness, employment, property,media, healthcare, banking,insolvency and family law. Hayesadded six lawyers to its rosterthrough 2019, including MaryKelleher, Tim Waghorn andRebecca Conlon. On the deal front,the firm advised on the sale of carparking operator NCPS to Apcoa, atransaction that involved avoluntary notification to theCompetition and ConsumerProtection Commission in order todeliver greater deal certainty.“Deals between competitors inhighly competitive markets bringa need for more complex andsophisticated transaction servicesand it was very rewarding todeliver a great result for ourclients,” says the firm.

PHILIP LEE Solicitors: 55Mng. Partner: Philip LeeThe practice in Dublin iscomplemented by offices inLondon, Brussels and SanFrancisco. Lateral partner hiresover the past year include MarieKinsella, John Given, and ThomasO’Malley, while in April 2020

corporate specialist BernardMcEvoy merged his practice withthe firm. The Philip Lee firm issole legal adviser to the DataProtection Commission and isinvolved in the ‘Schrems/FacebookII’ litigation. According to PhilipLee: “The proceedings involvehighly complex and novel issues ofdata protection law as well asaspects of US law on privacy,intelligence gathering andsurveillance of non-nationals. Theultimate outcome of the case willhave a significant impact on dataflows from the EU to the USA andother jurisdictions.”

FIELDFISHERSolicitors: 53Mng. Partner: JP McDowellMcDowell Purcell merged with UKlaw firm Fieldfisher in May 2019.The firm has a leading regulatorypractice and also specialises incorporate and commercial,renewable energy, banking andfinance, data protection, litigationand dispute resolution,employment, commercialproperty, insolvency andrestructuring, and environmentaland planning. A notable recentappointment is Liam Corrigan tohead up the firm’s new technologypractice.On the deal front, JP McDowell

instances advising Simply Blue

80 BUSINESS PLUS MAY 2020

BP SURVEY COMMERCIAL LAW

William Fry opened in new office in Cork in 2019, led by Brian O’Callaghan (left) and LauraHoulihan, pictured with managing partner Bryan Bourke

continued on page 82

JOHN ALLEN

May 2020

DEPARTMENTS

2 Editor’s Note4 Business Beat38 Legal39 Funds40 Business News41 Media & Marketing84 Motoring87 Subscriptions88 Top Ten

Elan 26

18 Covid PivotsCovid-19 is the mother of invention for SMEswho are having to innovate to generate newrevenue streams during the pandemic

30 CerebreonThe Donegal business is streamlining UKinsolvencies from its remote base and hasattracted €300,000 taxpayer investment

12 Liquidity CrunchGovernment wage subsidies are a big help toemployers but locked-down firms are in urgentneed of official liquidity assistance too

43 Commercial LawMost large law firms were well prepared forremote working. Managing Partners speakabout the experience and the trading outlook

COVER STORIES

iPad Pro 32

Trade Marks 28

Eppione 25

StuartFogarty36

FREE SHAVING OIL FORSUBSCRIBERS

SEE PAGE 87

Skoda Superb 84

Gold Spike 39

Odd Couple 9

BleeperBike 34

ALSO INSIDE

9 PoliticsFine Gael and Fianna Fáil are on the cusp of government, but can LeoVaradkar play second fiddle to Micheál Martin?

25 EppioneBroker David Kindlon devised a free HR platform to sell insuranceonline. Turns out that users are prepared to pay for the facility

28 Trade MarksCreativity with brand names, logos and designs is required for legalprotection, FRKelly’s Mary Bleahene explains

32 iPad ProThe latest Pro model is a dream machine for creatives. There arecheaper devices in the iPad orchard too

34 BleeperBikeHugh Cooney has shown dogged perseverance in taking on a state-funded bike rental rival in Dublin

36 Crash CourseAdman Stuart Fogarty knows all about a liquidity crunch. His advice tofirms battling for survival is cut deep and never give up

42 Are You Listening?Effective listening is less a naturally innate skill and more of a frame ofmind that draws on patience

86 Lockdown WellbeingPhyscial activity helps the immune system and acts as a buffer againstthe effects of stress