Firms To Watch: Tax

Dentons Ireland launched a tax practice in Ireland following the arrival of the highly regarded Niamh Keogh in late 2022.

Firms in the Spotlight Tax

Anne O'Connell Solicitors

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Anne O’Connell Solicitors (AOC Solicitors) is a leading and award-winning Irish specialist Employment Law firm which was established in 2017 by our Principal, Anne O’Connell.

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Tax in Ireland

A&L Goodbody LLP

A&L Goodbody LLP has a wide-ranging tax practice, routinely advising on a host of high-profile contentious and non-contentious engagements. The group continues to take key roles on major M&A transactions, debt capital markets deals, and contentious tax engagements, notably achieving prominence in both cross-border and domestic matters. It has garnered further acclaim for its expertise in big-ticket tax assessment appeals. Transfer pricing, as well as transfer pricing litigation, are also key areas of strength for the team. Practice head Paul Fahy has an established track record in transactions and disputes, including high-value cross-border M&A and transfer pricing disputes. Other noteworthy figures include Amelia O’Beirne and James Somerville.




















Practice head(s):

Paul Fahy


Other key lawyers:

James Somerville; Amelia O’Beirne; Philip McQueston


Key clients

Tesco Ireland Limited


Arthur J Gallagher


CVC Capital Partners


ICON plc


Prothena Corporation Plc


AIB


GE


Premier Sports


Bank of Ireland


ESB


Work highlights


  • Advised Allied Irish Banks (AIB) on the acquisition of Goodbody Stockbrokers.
  • Advised Arthur J Gallagher on the acquisition of Innovu Insurance.
  • Advised Prothena Corporation on its $1.2bn disposal of its ATTR Amyloidosis Programme to Novo Nordisk.

Arthur Cox

Arthur Cox fields a large team with an impressive senior bench of highly-experienced practitioners. The wide-ranging practice encompasses corporate advisory issues and, most notably, M&A-related work, for which the team is particularly well known. Beyond M&A, the team is additionally well-versed in financial services and capital markets transactions, private equity and investment fund-driven tax matters, intellectual property issues, real estate work, and tax disputes. Fintan Clancy, who heads up the tax group, is noted for M&A and capital markets related tax matters, as is Caroline Devlin, who is also rated for fund-connected issues. Ailish Finnerty and David Kilty are further key names to note.

Practice head(s):

Fintan Clancy


Other key lawyers:

Caroline Devlin; Ailish Finnerty; David Kilty; Orlaith Kane


Testimonials

‘Highly approachable and commercial; always solve the problem at hand.’

‘Very accessible and focus on solving the commercial challenges and objectives.’

Key clients

Eaton Corporation plc


Blackstone GSO


Abbvie


Trane Technologies


Allianz


Abbey International Finance


Bank of America/Merrill Lynch


Citibank plc


CRH plc


Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals


Medtronic


Aviator


Kingspan


Viatris


Nuveen


Getty Images


Work highlights


  • Advised KBC Bank Ireland on its withdrawal from the Irish banking market, including the transfer of a substantial proportion of its banking business to Bank of Ireland through both statutory and contractual transfer mechanisms.
  • Advised Concord Acquisition Corp, a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company, on its business combination with Circle Internet Financial to take Circle public.
  • Advised Global Shares on its acquisition by JP Morgan.

Matheson LLP

Matheson LLP fields a substantial team of tax specialists, which includes a number of senior practitioners. The firm routinely acts as primary Irish counsel to numerous EU and US multinationals and financial institutions, advising on transfer pricing and tax controversy issues, indirect taxes, and large-scale restructurings. The team features a wealth of lawyers that double up as chartered accounts or chartered tax advisers; Shane Hogan, Joe Duffy, Aidan Fahy, Turlough Galvin, Catherine O’Meara and Gerry Thornton are all leading practitioners. Caroline Austin, indirect tax specialist Matthew Broadstock, and Tomás Bailey are among the most prominent junior partners.

Practice head(s):

Shane Hogan


Other key lawyers:

Turlough Galvin; Catherine O’Meara; Gerry Thornton; Joe Duffy; Aidan Fahy; Matthew Broadstock; Brian Doohan; Vahan Tchrakian; Philip Tully; Tomás Bailey; Barry McGettrick; Caroline Austin


Testimonials

‘The team provides the highest quality of service. Matheson have a deep understanding of the Irish and international tax landscape and are able to provide sound advice to navigate complex issues.’

‘Shane Hogan, Brian Doohan and the team have exceptional client service. They are extremely responsive and will gather answers to complex questions in a very time efficient manner. They really understand our business and offer sound solutions when needed.’

‘Great team effort and committed to client request.’

‘Barry McGettrick is my key contact; proactive with a problem-solving focus.’

Key clients

ProKidney


MariaDB Corporation Ab


JP Morgan


Vermilion Energy Inc


Johnson & Johnson


Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund


Vertiv


Trinity Biotech Plc


Fremantle Media Group


Advent International


Vertex Inc


Circle


AbbVie


STERIS plc


Cimpress


Horizon Therapeutics


Work highlights


  • Advised ProKidney on its business combination with a NASDAQ-listed SPAC in a deal valuing the combined entity at $2.64bn.
  • Advised JP Morgan on the consolidation of its European operations into a single European public company.
  • Advised Johnson & Johnson on the separation of its consumer health business and the creation of a new publicly traded company.

William Fry LLP

Especially rated for its capabilities in M&A, private equity, and real estate investments, William Fry LLP‘s stellar reputation in the tax field also extends to capital markets issues, structured finance mandates and tax disputes, regularly appearing on behalf of clients in Tax Appeal Commission (TAC) and High Court cases. Practice chair Sonya Manzor is noted for her work in M&A, inward investments and corporate reorganisations, while Ted McGrath‘s expertise is concentrated on the financial services industry, especially the investment management sector. Brian Duffy continues to helm a number of tax controversies and tax disputes, as well as tax structuring matters. Praised as ‘technically excellent, very responsive and pragmatic‘, Rachel Fox has a blossoming reputation in M&A and capital markets-related tax issues. Anne Tobin was promoted to partner in 2022.

Practice head(s):

Sonya Manzor


Other key lawyers:

Ted McGrath; Brian Duffy; Rachel Fox; Anne Tobin


Testimonials

‘Extremely able, full-service tax team which has a great breath of experience, really understands the transaction world, and has access to technical resources outside the practice when needed.’

‘Rachel Fox is a top tax professional, who is particularly at home with transactional work. She combines technical as well as commercial expertise. Certainly one of the leading M&A tax professionals in Ireland.’

‘Rachel Fox is technically excellent, very responsive, and pragmatic. Rachel is an absolute pleasure to work with and always delivers. Sonya Manzor has excellent technical skills and is very dedicated to her clients.’

‘The William Fry tax team are excellent with respect to technical tax expertise. Very important for big M&A transactions.’

‘Sonya Manzor stands out. She has advised us for a number of years on M&A transactions in particular, but also some internal restructuring. She’s technically excellent, practical, and commercial in her advice. Good negotiation skills on M&A transactions, always gets us a strong tax deed position as a buyer. I definitely want Sonya on my side of the table when negotiating the tax aspects of M&A transactions!’

‘Rachel Fox is a strong member of the team that we have come to rely on. She is always prompt to respond with accurate, fully informed advice. Rachel is commercially minded, gives advice in context, has a broad knowledge of technical matters – particularly in the area of international tax structuring – and always explains things clearly.’

‘William Fry is one of our longstanding tax advisory partners in Ireland. They have important access to a global affiliation of legal firms that can be important in cross-border matters. Very responsive and partners well with our team. The team is experienced and demonstrably brings a high level of professionalism and technical experience to the advisory services they offer.’

‘They always demonstrably deliver a high quality product, on time and with high degree of commercial and technical judgement. They work well with our team, understand our needs and communicate very clearly. They have strong technical and commercial experience, which they bring to problem-solving.’

Work highlights


  • Advised Clayton, Dubilier & Rice on its $4.1bn cash offer for UDG Healthcare.
  • Advised IBM on its $19bn reorganisation and spinout of its Managed Infrastructure Services unit into Kyndryl, a new public company.
  • Advised Yew Grove REIT on its €177m sale to Slate Office REIT by way of a scheme of arrangement.

DLA Piper Ireland LLP

DLA Piper Ireland LLP has a burgeoning presence in the Irish market, and the team has gained recognition for its engagement in M&A transactions and SPAC deals, capital markets issuances and securitisation programmes, and real estate financings. Maura Dineen leads the tax team and is also noted for her experience in M&A and corporate transactions, including those in the life sciences and technology sectors. Sean Murray is another highly-rated practitioner with an excellent track record in structured finance and securitisation matters, among other areas. International tax specialist Declan Lavelle joined from William Fry LLP in July 2022.

Practice head(s):

Maura Dineen


Other key lawyers:

Sean Murray; Declan Lavelle; Michael Tansley


Testimonials

‘Prompt responses with clear and concise advice.’

‘Declan Lavelle is friendly, approachable and very user-friendly.’

‘We enjoy working with this very reliable, commercially focused team who are dependable and very easy to work with. They give sound advice in tight time frames and add value.’

‘Sean Murray is bright and knows his stuff and is able to convey that to us in a user friendly way. Michael Tansley is also the same and both are reliable and helpful and trusted advisers. Tax is a difficult subject and they are able to give clear and concise advice to us and add value.’

‘Practical but incredibly knowledgeable. Easily one of the strongest tax practices in Irish market.’

‘Sean Murray – incredibly knowledgeable, but also friendly to work with as well as being pragmatic. I’ve worked with him on some of the most complex deals in the market, and would never hesitate to recommend him.’

Key clients

Kinnerton Credit Management


Sampension Administrationsselskab A/S


Lendable


Banco Santander & Santander Consumer Bank


Fairfield Real Estate Finance Services


Santander Consumer Multirent


TIP Trailer Services


Deutsche Bank AG London branch


Navitas Semiconductor


PIB Group


Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc


SmartBear Inc


Work highlights


  • Advised Navitas Semiconductor on a $1bn cross-border SPAC transaction.
  • Advised Deutsche Bank on the Irish law aspects of a trade receivables securitisation programme for Greek State controlled Public Power Corporation.
  • Acted as lead counsel to Fairfield, a real estate lender, on its loan on loan financing from Goldman Sachs to fund the development of social and affordable housing in Ireland.

Eversheds Sutherland

Eversheds Sutherland has a growing presence in the tax sphere, notably in advising on holding company structures, M&A and corporate restructurings. It has strong sector experience in the structured finance, funds, renewable energy, real estate and aviation industries, and has built an established tax team in Dublin that routinely links with colleagues in the UK and other international offices. The firm has worked on a series of renewable energy projects, involving complex tax elements and is further active in financial services-related activities in Ireland. Dublin managing partner Alan Connell is a leading name in the tax field, especially corporate tax work, including inward investments, cross-border tax planning issues, corporate restructurings, M&A, joint ventures, and transfer pricing matters. Tim Kiely provides further tax expertise relating to financial services issues and corporate taxes.

Practice head(s):

Alan Connell


Other key lawyers:

Tim Kiely


Key clients

American Express


Capita


Aquila Capital


Letter One


Boots


Nike


Owens & Minor


Sony Europe


Toyota


T5 Data Centres


Work highlights


  • Acted as tax counsel to Aston Lark Group on the acquisition of a number of Irish-based independent insurance brokers.
  • Advised Celtic Interconnector on the cross-border tax implications of the planned subsea link to allow the exchange of electricity between Ireland and France.

Maples Group

Maples Group‘s tax group has strong experience in acting for investment banks, private equity houses and funds, handling funds formations, investment structuring issues, VAT mandates and direct tax matters. The department has also saw growth in its limited partnerships-related work, tax controversy and litigation. Andrew Quinn and William Fogarty are leading figures in the market, noted for fund structures and investment platforms, CLOs, venture capital fund raisings, and Irish real estate and debt structuring work. Lynn Cramer has further senior-level expertise in tax planning issues for international clients.

Practice head(s):

Andrew Quinn


Other key lawyers:

William Fogarty; Lynn Cramer


Testimonials

‘The Maples tax team is adept at advising on complex Irish tax issues both in the capital markets and corporate market sectors. They are extremely responsive in deal timetables. Moreover, they are excellent in keeping in touch and collaborating outside transactional work, fostering know-how, information-sharing, and client introductions.’

‘Andrew Quinn, Lynn Cramer and Will Fogarty are all superb tax lawyers, being accessible, responsive and helpful. They have been exemplary practitioners over the course of two challenging years with Covid.’

‘The level of expertise available at short notice. And attention to client service.’

‘Will Fogarty (Partner Tax) – Readily available and always with a solution. Always a great fall back in complicated or difficult situations.’

‘The Maples team are technically great and always approachable and available.’

‘Will Fogarty is approachable and commercial and always gives practical advice. Lynn Cramer is careful and cerebral. They are a “go to” team.’

‘I have huge trust that I’m getting good advice from William Fogarty. William has huge experience advising private equity clients across fund structures, carried interest structuring, VAT and other areas. He delivers on time and communicates very well. He’s very accessible at short notice when issues arise.’

‘Will Fogarty is outstanding. He gives clear, practical advice and always comes up with solutions.’

Key clients

HPS Partners


Apollo Global Management


Blackstone/GSO


Morgan Stanley


Marathon Asset Management


Allied Irish Bank plc


Bain Capital


Avestus Capital Partners


Waterfall Asset Management


Oaktree Capital


Guggenheim Investment Partners


Cardinal Capital Group


Official Committee of Creditors of Mallinckrodt plc


Erisbeg Partners


Quadoro Doric


CVC Credit Partners


Pimco


Susquehanna


Goldman Sachs International


Mizuho International plc


Jefferies International Limited


ING Bank N.V.


Liberty Global


BlueBay Asset Management LLP


Spire Partners


Carlson Travel


Capital Four Management


Nomura International plc


Goldentree Loan Management LP


CIFC


Invesco Senior Secured Management Inc


Angelo Gordon


Palmer Square Capital


Natwest Markets plc


Voya Investment Management


Neuberger Berman


Sixth Street Partners


Muzinich


Falko Regional Aircraft Limited


Arena Partners


Barclays Bank plc


Wayflyer


Work highlights


  • Advised Fortress Investment Group on the establishment of Fortress Commercial Finance Europe DAC, an originator, and a CLO risk retention structure.
  • Advised Wayflyer on its Series A and B funding rounds.
  • Advised MidCap Financial on its senior fund issuance.

Mason Hayes & Curran LLP

Mason Hayes & Curran LLP has a wide-ranging and increasingly prominent practice, and continues to be heavily involved in transactions involving life sciences, financial services, renewable energy and aviation businesses. It remains active in capital markets offerings and securitisation and transactional related matters. Niamh Caffrey leads the department.

Practice head(s):

Niamh Caffrey


Testimonials

‘A very friendly and engaging team of experts, who are willing to go the extra mile.’

‘A very friendly and engaging team, the professional technical expertise is taken as a prerequisite, thus, the warm experience makes the transaction enjoyable.’

‘The team is very strong on the Irish and international tax structuring aspects of non-performing loan portfolios.’

Key clients

Biohaven Pharmaceutical International DAC


Airbus


Agilitas Private Equity


PJSC “Lukoil”/Lukoil Capital DAC


Statkraft Ireland Limited


Team 17


GR Winds Farms 1 Limited (Greencoat Renewables)


Fane Valley Co-Operative Society Limited


Blueglade Limited


DomusVI


Alec Milligan and The Alec and Joan Milligan Discretionary Trust as the shareholders of Gem Plastics Limited


BAI Communications


Comar Holdings LLC


Fox Williams – AMT Sybex


Cooley – SF Engineering


Emerge Capital Partners


Work highlights


  • Advised Airbus Financial Services and Airbus Helicopters Leasing Services on a reorganisation.
  • Advised Biohaven Pharmaceutical on the tax aspects of a major collaboration transaction with Pfizer on migraine remedies.
  • Advised Blueglade on the sale of companies in the Momentum Support group to ABM International Holdings.

McCann FitzGerald LLP

McCann FitzGerald LLP has a major presence in structured finance, securitisation and aviation finance mandates, and the firm is also rated for its expertise in renewable energy-related tax matters and industry-wide corporate transactions, real estate and construction work, fund issues, tax disputes and transfer pricing matters. The group also has a steady stream of general advisory engagements, including tax reporting obligations. Eleanor MacDonagh is head of the financial services tax group and Alan Heuston is rated for corporate transactions, restructurings, executive remuneration issues and tax disputes. Counsel Deirdre Barnicle is head of tax compliance services, and senior associate James Quirke is another key practitioner.

Practice head(s):

Eleanor MacDonagh; Alan Heuston; Deirdre Barnicle


Other key lawyers:

James Quirke


Testimonials

‘A strong team. I have generally found the tax team to be proactive and commercially astute. We have dealt with the tax team on numerous M&A transactions and some revenue investigations. Advice is provided in a concise and straightforward manner and any issues are always dealt with, with professionalism and pragmatism.’

‘Alan Heuston – Very knowledgeable and responsive. Practical and commercially minded. Solution focused. James Quirke – Great technical knowledge of tax legislation. Approachable and responsive.’

‘We have used McCanns for all of our M&A tax work for over recent years. They are our go to law firm in Ireland and one of the leading practices for renewable energy.’

‘Alan Heuston and James Quirke. Both are excellent tax lawyers with a deep understanding of the renewable energy industry and trusted partners to our business.’

‘The team have great experience in the specifics of tax and have the benefit of being able to draw in other specialised partners to advise on associated issues.’

‘Alan Heuston is an experienced professional with a wealth of knowledge and understanding of the specifics of tax law.’

‘McCann FitzGerald LLP has a very strong tax practice that has proactively assisted us with the recent Irish tax law changes as well as transactional work.’

‘Eleanor MacDonagh is our lead tax partner who is extremely knowledgeable and responsive.’

Key clients

Deutsche Bank AG London Branch


Magnetar Financial (UK) LLP


Aercap


Copa Airlines


Investcorp


Urbeo Residential ICAV


WeWork


AXA Real Estate Investment Managers UK Limited


Nordic Aviation Capital


BWG Group


Coillte


Pollen Street Capital


An Post


Lioncor Developments


Citibank


Arrow Global Limited


Primary Health Properties REIT


Ardstone


Irish Life Investment Managers


Electricity Supply Board


Housing Finance Agency


Viva Aerobus


Huuuge Games group


SMBC Aviation Capital Limited


Central Bank of Ireland


Hammerson Plc


Willis Tower Watson


SSEF


Peal Capital Partners Group


Allied Irish Banks (AIB)


Harvest CLO Platform


Work highlights


  • Provided tax advice to AIB on the buyback of a percentage of its share capital from the Minister for Finance of Ireland. This involved specialist stamp duty advice in connection with the off-market directed buy-back of such shares by the Minister.
  • Advised Sherry FitzGerald, its shareholders and its management, on its sale to CastleGate Investments.
  • Advised PEAL Capital Partners on the tax structuring, establishment and authorisation of PEAL Capital Partners ILP, one of the first investment limited partnerships authorised under the new Irish ILP regime.

Walkers

Walkers‘ tax practice has grown in parallel with the firm’s general expansion in Ireland, and is particularly rated for finance and debt capital markets, real estate, investment funds, aircraft leasing and corporate transactions. The tax team plays an integral role in CLOs, securitisations and structured finance deals, along with other capital markets transactions; distressed investments and loan portfolio deals are also a forte for the firm. Dublin managing partner Jonathan Sheehan is a leading figure in the tax arena, and Aisling Burke has a burgeoning reputation in the space. Experienced consultant Padhraic Mulpeter brings further gravitas to the team, and of counsel Eimear Burbridge is an important figure for CLOs and securitisations.

Practice head(s):

Jonathan Sheehan


Other key lawyers:

Aisling Burke; Eimear Burbridge; Padhraic Mulpeter


Testimonials

‘Walkers’ tax team in Dublin are very strong, with a growing bench strength in the form of Padraic Mulpeter who complements the already strong practices of Jonathan Sheehan and Aisling Burke.’

The team’s advice in relation inbound Irish tax structuring of international corporate real estate transactions is second to none.

‘Jonathan Sheehan is absolutely first class. He is responsive, excellent technically and extremely commercial.’

‘Jonathan Sheehan’s knowledge of the Irish real estate sector and market is outstanding.’

‘Aisling Burke is a pleasure to work with and provides clear, succinct and commercial advice.’

‘Knowledgeable, proactive and good to deal with.’

‘Very responsive and provides nuanced advice and alternatives to consider.’

‘Aisling Burke is outstanding. She understands our needs and provides solutions that are appropriate to our size and scale.’

Key clients

Accunia Credit Management Fondsmæglerselskab A/S


Banco Santander/ Santander Consumer Finance/ Santander UK


Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML)


DTZ Investors


Eagle Street Partners


Hertz Global Holdings Inc.


HPS Investment Partners (UK) LLP


KTB Asset Management


Man Group plc / Man GPM Aalto


Onex Capital Partners


Orange Capital Re DAC


Prytania Investment Advisors LLP


Redding Ridge Asset Management (UK) LLP


UniCredit Bank AG


Work highlights


  • Acted as Irish legal and tax counsel to Nuveen Real Estate and Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America, on a €130m green loan advanced by Nuveen to a Dublin-based core open-ended social and affordable housing fund managed by the Ardstone Group.
  • Acted as issuer counsel and lead Irish legal, tax and listing adviser on over 58 CLO transactions for a variety of clients.
  • Acted as lead Irish tax counsel to Eagle Street Partners on the establishment of the platform in both Ireland and Jersey.

RDJ LLP

RDJ LLP is noted for its advice on the tax aspects of cross-border M&A, and routinely works on tax efficient succession planning matters for individuals and corporates. The tax group works closely with the corporate and commercial team, along with the private client department; tax partner Eoin Tobin also heads up the firm’s private client services team. The firm has also been notably active in tax appeals before the Appeal Commissioners and the High Court, and is also recognised for its work in the healthcare sector. John Cuddigan is chair of the taxation committee of the Law Society of Ireland and Mark Barrett specialises in cross-border transactions and advises foreign businesses on establishing operations in Ireland.

Practice head(s):

John Cuddigan


Other key lawyers:

Mark Barrett; Eoin Tobin; Mark Ludlow


Testimonials

‘This is a superb tax team. Every single member is excellent and I trust their advice implicitly. I would not look past this team for my tax requirements.’

‘Mark Barrett, John Cuddigan, Eoin Tobin and Mark Ludlow. All of the team members are exceptional. They are incredibly responsive with excellent attention to detail. They form a key part of my team.’

‘Excellent tax team with individuals that collaborate and work well together to provide a hugely professional service across all tax issues with experts in each area. Huge knowledge base within the tax team that is kept up to date.’

‘Professional and courteous while providing a timely service and very clear and practical advice that is presented in simple terms. Mark Barrett would be typical example of a partner within RDJ tax that would do this.’

‘John Cuddigan – responsive, commercial, professional, trusting and personable.’

Key clients

Sretaw Private Equity Unlimited Company


Bon Secours Health System


Hovione Group


Morgan McKinley Group


iNua Hospitality PLC


Poppulo


GTT Communications


ByrneLooby


BioPharma Engineering


Lonsdale Capital Partners


Work highlights


  • Provided tax transaction support to the selling shareholders and target companies on the sale of Client Solutions to EY.
  • Advised Cork-based Compliance and Risks Limited on its sale to Silicon Valley-headquartered Luminate Capital Partners.
  • Advised Morgan McKinley on the acquisition of Abtran, the Irish outsourcing firm.