The Legal 500

Within Banking and finance, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody is consistently given headline instructions, such as advising the first lien lenders on eircom’s €4bn debt restructuring; acting for Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation on the financing of its €7.2bn acquisition of RBS Aerospace; and representing Quinn Group on its well-documented bank and bond debt restructuring. Catherine Duffy heads this ‘well-connected’ team of partners with ‘excellent industry knowledge’, and is recommended along with Adrian Burke, Maireadh Dale, Séamus Ó Cróinin, and Peter Walker.

Within Capital markets, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody’s formula of finance expertise and corporate muscle ensures a market-leading practice led by the ‘excellent’ Ciaran Rogers. He is ably supported by colleagues including the experienced Peter Murray and John Given, who are debt and equity specialists respectively. The firm advised Escher Group on an AIM listing – a rare occurrence for Irish companies in recent years – and acted for key client Jazz Pharmaceuticals on its IPO on NASDAQ and secondary offering.

Within Construction, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody’s busy practice excels in both the transactional and litigious arena. Practice head Kevin Feeney continues to lead advice to DirectRoute as preferred bidder on the N17/N18 motorway PPP, which is scheduled for financial close in 2013. The ‘outstanding’ Eamonn Conlon has ‘in-depth knowledge of construction contracts’, and ‘a common-sense approach to problem solving’.

Within Corporate and commercial, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody’s team is ‘trusted for the most sensitive and high-profile matters’, and is ‘a go-to firm for issues of Irish law’. It is a prominent transactional practice and advised the purchasers on the two stellar deals of the year: representing Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation on its $7.2bn acquisition of RBS Aerospace; and ‘rainmaker’ John Given acting for Eaton Corporation on its $11.8bn acquisition of Cooper Industries. David Widger heads the practice.

Within Dispute resolution, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody’s prolific and heavy-hitting practice is acting for Bord Gáis in a strategically important land dispute concerning a €155m wind farm development and representing a global company in matters pertaining to the collapse of Anglo Irish Bank. Liam Kennedy heads this team of ‘highly professional’ lawyers, which includes Kenan Furlong, Peter Law and Eileen Roberts.

Within EU and competition, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody’s Vincent Power has ‘unparalleled knowledge’, and ‘an easygoing and entertaining manner which belies his work rate’. Alan McCarthy and Anna-Marie Curran are also highly regarded. The firm advised Ireland’s Referendum Commission on the landmark Fiscal Stability Treaty referendum and a related legal challenge brought by Sinn Féin.

Within Employment, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody provides ‘outstanding service and commitment’, and group head Duncan Inverarity has boosted the practice significantly since his arrival in 2011. Recent work includes co-ordinating the employment aspects of Jazz Pharmaceutical’s reverse takeover of Azur Pharma and its acquisition of EUSA Pharma, and acting in boardroom disputes for major companies, such as a significant fitness and probity investigation. Barry Walsh is also recommended.

Within Energy and natural resources, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody has ‘a wonderful depth of knowledge’ and is acting on multiple renewable energy projects: it is advising on the Gibbet Hill wind farm, and is acting for developer Element Power on two significant wind farm projects. Ross Moore is leading Irish law advice to the lenders of the €500m Dublin Waste to Energy project, which is a PPP involving complex energy regulatory issues.

Within Information technology, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody’s well-resourced and ‘solution-focused’ team has attracted a growing market share including instructions from Microsoft, Google and IBM. It is also acting for Irish Life & Permanent on the IT and business process separation of Irish Life from Permanent TSB. John Whelan heads the practice, which also includes Mark Rasdale, who is ‘very up-to-speed on IT legal issues’ and ‘slips easily into the shoes of his clients when advising on risk’.

Within Insolvency and corporate restructuring, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody’s ‘excellent’ and ‘technically strong’ practice played key roles in the headline restructurings of eircom and Quinn Group, and advised NAMA on the restructuring of the David Daly property development portfolio. According to clients, the partners ‘are more than lawyers, they are trusted business advisers’. Practice head David Baxter is ‘outstanding in his field’, and the ‘solution-oriented’ Mark Traynor is also recommended.

Within Insurance, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody has an extensive roster of major insurer and reinsurer clients such as Zurich, Prudential, Legal & General, and Barclays Reinsurance, for which it handles regulatory, corporate, policy, and dispute resolution matters. The team acted for Irish Life & Permanent during its restructuring, including the transfer of Irish Life Assurance to the state. Practice head James Grennan is highly regarded.

Within Intellectual property, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody’s ‘solid’ team provides ‘quality, solution-focused advice’, and is representing Google following a competitive tender. It acted for Abbott Laboratories regarding the Irish aspects of its multi-jurisdictional patent dispute with Medinol. John Whelan, John Cahir and Mark Rasdale are the practice co-heads.

Within Investment funds, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody continues to shine in this competitive market thanks to its sizeable and expert practice comprising four partners and 30 assistants, led by Brian McDermott, which attracts high-end instructions. The team is advising RBS Asset Management on the conversion of an existing Irish UCITS fund into a feeder fund, the first to be approved by the Central Bank of Ireland under new rules. Other clients include M&G Investment Management and Deutsche Bank.

Within Maritime and shipping, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody draws upon leading individuals from across the firm such as finance expert Catherine Duffy and competition guru Vincent Power, and advises on financing, public procurement and EU state aid matters, among others. Clients include Irish Continental Group and Arklow Shipping.

Within Media and telecoms, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody attracts a number of household-name clients from Ireland’s burgeoning social media sector. These include Google and YouTube, which the firm advised on the injunction defamation proceedings brought by Dublin college student Eoin McKeogh. TV3, BSkyB and MTV Networks are also clients of the practice, which is headed by John Whelan.

Within Pensions and employee benefits, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

Sheena Doggett at A&L Goodbody heads the firm’s share schemes practice, which acts for clients including Deutsche Bank, The Kellogg Company and Imperial Tobacco. The pensions group, led by Eamon Brady, acts for Irish Life, NAMA and Irish Airlines Superannuation Schemes, and advised the latter on Aer Lingus’ controversial application for a €500m capital reduction.

Within Planning and environment, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody has strengthened its resources by moving real estate partner Alan Roberts into the team to co-head the practice alongside the widely admired Alison Fanagan. The firm advised the Irish Waste Management Association on its recent submissions to government, and successfully defended Ferrovial Agroman (Ireland) against criminal charges of health and safety breaches. Bord Gáis and Irish Distillers Group are also clients.

Within Projects and PPP, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody is unsurpassed and goes the extra mile, according to clients, and its lawyers are ‘excellent at establishing relationships with all parties with which they interact, not just their own client’. Kevin Feeney and Ross Moore are acting for DirectRoute Consortium as the preferred bidder in the €300m N17 PPP road project, and also representing the consortium of lenders, including Bank of Ireland, AIB and Ulster Bank, on the project financing of the Dublin Waste to Energy project.

Within Public sector, A&L Goodbody is a second tier firm,

A&L Goodbody advises a range of public sector bodies, such as the Referendum Commission, University College Dublin, the Department of Finance, and Bord Gáis. The firm also represented NAMA in the high-profile enforcement litigation against developer David Daly. This multidisciplinary practice includes Ross Moore, Mark Ward and Paul White.

Within Real estate, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

Mairead Sherlock heads A&L Goodbody’s team, which shows ‘great commercial acumen’. It advised on the few transactions involving trophy properties during the course of 2012, such as acting for a European investor on the purchase of four blocks of the AIB Bankcentre, and assisting with the €33.8m sale of Riverside II to a German fund. Ger O’Toole is ‘proactive’ and ‘approachable’, and Niamh O’Sullivan and Stephen O’Riordan are also recommended.

Within Tax, A&L Goodbody is a first tier firm,

A&L Goodbody advises on transactions requiring innovative or time-pressured tax solutions, such as Jazz Pharmaceuticals’ corporate inversion for legal and tax purposes from the US to Ireland, and assisting Quinn Group with its complex financial restructuring. Practice head Peter Maher is a leading tax practitioner.