The Legal 500

Within Banking and finance, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors earned significant new appointments to domestic and international bank panels during 2012, including that of IBRC. Richard Curran and Neil O’Keeffe are ‘extremely proactive in identifying ancillary or related issues in transactions’.

Within Capital markets, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors’ Tracy Gilvarry and ‘star player’ David Williams have niche expertise in the life settlements asset class, and acted for Greenwich Life Settlements on the redomiciliation of a $160m portfolio from the US into an Irish Section 10 SPV.

Within Construction, tier 4

LK Shields Solicitors advised CLG Developments on its €400m joint venture with Balfour Beatty for the long-term supply, construction and maintenance of network services to Bord Gáis. The firm is noted for its dispute resolution expertise in this area, with Gerard O’Hanlon being the key figure for this work.

Within Corporate and commercial, LK Shields Solicitors is a second tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors’ ‘very committed and creative’ team enjoys strong links with UK and US firms, and acted for the vendors of AEP Networks during its sale to UK-based Ultra Electronics. Gerry Halpenny is ‘a very strong individual’, Richard Curran is ‘an unfailing professional’, and team head Emmet Scully is also recommended.

Within Dispute resolution, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors recently acted for developer David Daly and his family in a challenge against NAMA, and defended Motorola in the High Court against a €107m damages claim brought by IBB Internet Services concerning the provision of a WiMAX telecoms network. Edmund Butler heads the practice, which includes ‘excellent litigator’ Michael Kavanagh and Jill Callanan, who provides ‘a superb level of service’.

Within EU and competition, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

Marco Hickey at LK Shields Solicitors has ‘one of the acutest competition minds in Dublin’. Clients include Chevron, Island Capital and Valero Energy (Ireland).

Within Employment, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors has ‘a great depth of expertise at its disposal’, and is the Irish member of respected global labour law network, Ius Laboris. It recently acted for a well-known international company on its redundancy programme. Practice head Michael Kavanagh is ‘excellent’.

Within Energy and natural resources, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors is more commercial than many firms, according to clients. Philip Daly, who has ‘a great knowledge of the energy sector’, led advice to CLG Developments on its joint venture with Balfour Beatty to operate the Bord Gáis gas network.

Within Information technology, LK Shields Solicitors is a second tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors advises Autotrader on contentious and non-contentious matters concerning its online business in Ireland and the UK, including data protection. Practice head Deirdre Kilroy is ‘impressive in an unassuming way’.

Within Insolvency and corporate restructuring, LK Shields Solicitors is a second tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors’ substantial insolvency and corporate restructuring practice acts for clients including KPMG. The team includes the ‘tenacious’ Edmund Butler, ‘excellent commercial solicitor’ Hugh Garvey and Jillian Callanan, who shows ‘insolvency expertise’.

Within Insurance, tier 4

LK Shields Solicitors has ‘a strong, focused team with an excellent knowledgebase’. It is noted for its professional indemnity defence practice, where it handles multimillion-euro claims. Clients include Liberty Mutual, Solicitors Mutual Defence Fund and QBE.

Within Intellectual property, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors’ growing international client base includes Red Bull, News International and Pernod, and the team also advised Done Deal, Ireland’s largest online classified advertising provider, on trade mark prosecution. Deirdre Kilroy is ‘highly knowledgeable and experienced in the area of IP’.

Within Investment funds, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

David Williams at LK Shields Solicitors gives ‘practical, business-savvy advice’, and is ‘very knowledgeable about the funds industry’. The firm advises various top asset managers, such as Henderson and Scottish Widows, and also acted for Life Settlements Funds on establishing Global Insurance Settlements Funds, a QIF.

Within Media and telecoms, tier 4

LK Shields Solicitors has ‘a high level of expertise’ in media and telecoms. The team is acting for Motorola in a €107m claim brought by IBB Internet Services concerning the provision of a WiMAX telecoms network. Media clients include News International and Irish Press plc.

Within Pensions and employee benefits, LK Shields Solicitors is a first tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors continues to represent major employers and schemes, such as Waterstones and AIB Group. It also advises the trustees of the Merrill Lynch Employee Benefit plan, and acted for the Retired Aviation Staff Association in its successful bid to defeat Aer Lingus’ attempt to reduce share capital by €500m. Fiona Thornton has ‘a wealth of experience’.

Within Planning and environment, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors has experience in a broad range of planning and environmental issues, particularly within the energy sector. The firm is noted for its disputes practice, which is led by Edmund Butler.

Within Real estate, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

Ray Gilmartin heads LK Shields Solicitors’ team, which is friendly, straight-talking and ‘gives advice with confidence’. It acted for the buyer during a high-end transaction in central Dublin, and is advising the receiver on the disposal of a portfolio of almost 40 retail, office and residential properties.

Within Tax, LK Shields Solicitors is a third tier firm,

LK Shields Solicitors’ clients are ‘consistently pleased with the practical and concise advice’ of ‘clear thinker’ Emmet Scully, who is an authority on Irish stamp duty, and practice head Eoin Cunneen. The firm has a specialist tax/regulatory investigations and prosecutions unit.