The Legal 500 > Europe, Middle East & Africa > Ireland > Media and entertainment

‘They have far-reaching oversight of the industry in Ireland, ranging from government to individual creatives and also have the broadest experience of any practice, making it the most effective across a range of all operations in media and entertainment.’

‘Ruth Hunter is very impressive. Calm, balanced, and incisive.’

‘McCann FitzGerald’s media and entertainment team is long established and benefits from the strength in depth this brings. But they are also one of the few larger Irish firms that has actual expertise in media defence work and taking cases to trial. They are led very capably by Karyn Harty, whose knowledge and experience is preeminent. She is more than ably supported by the members of her team including media defence specialists such as senior associates like Lesley Caplin, Jaime Flattery and Ciara FitzGerald as well the more junior members of the team such as Harry Oulton.’

‘Karyn Harty is always around when needed but also allows her team to get on with things.  When it comes to the senior associates Lesley Caplin, Jaime Flattery and Ciara FitzGerald as well the more junior Harry Oulton, I can’t sing their praises highly enough. They all work tirelessly and offer insight and commercial expertise on many difficult media litigation issues. ’

‘Reliable, available at all times and sound commercial sense’

‘Alan Heuston and Rory O’Malley are very thorough and are interchangeably available when we need them to address any queries or turn around work quickly. They are very fair and reasonable on how they bill for their work output.’

‘They are specialists in their field with experience of a range of productions.’

‘Jonathan Kelly is vastly experienced but approachable and available. Aoife McBennett is an extremely capable associate.’

‘Philip Lee have the top media and entertainment practice in Ireland with Jonathan Kelly and Brian Gormley. They have years of experience and are extremely personable to deal with. The firm really value their clients and as our media business has grown we have worked with various lawyers across property, tax, employment and litigation. Despite their impressive growth over the last while they have not lost touch with clients’ needs.’

‘Jonathan Kelly is without question the pre-eminent film and television lawyer in Ireland. He has a wealth of experience and knowledge of the industry and has been our go to production lawyer for a long time. We have engaged Jonathan not just on local productions but international co-productions and UK productions. He has huge respect from international lawyers and not least is a very loyal and decent guy.’

‘They have a highly experienced, top-tier media and entertainment team. They are easy to talk to. They are across a large amount of the projects in the territory across all levels and as such have a great depth of experience.’

‘Jonathan Kelly is highly experienced and has great problem solving capabilities. Brian Gormley is highly experienced, particularly in the animation sector, and is extremely organised and knowledgeable. Senior associate Jessica Gorman is a very experienced associate, easy to talk to and very reliable. Associate Aoife McBennett an up and coming associate, with good experience, is calm and reliable.’

‘The team is very good with clients. In stressful circumstances, they remain calm and offer clear advice.’

‘John Doyle has excellent tactical sense. He knows what will work, and how to bring about a sensible commercial solution. David Kavanagh is personable, responsive and calm. He has a very good knowledge of the field, and brings practical good sense to bear on difficult problems.’

‘The Dillon Eustace team with whom we engage is intimately familiar with the particular demands of the news media sector and gives immediate, accurate and practical advice tailored to the peculiarities of the issue at hand. The firm has a wealth of experience in this field acquired over decades of acting for national media clients.’

‘David Kavanagh stands out because of his enthusiasm for the work involved, his knowledge of the law and understanding of the issues. He is hard-working, diligent and incisive. His clear-sighted approach to finding effective and practical solutions reduces costs and unnecessary demands on resources.’

‘Kieran Kelly is Ireland’s most experienced media lawyer.’

‘My experience working with Flynn O’Driscoll has been exceptional. What makes the firm unique is the efficiency in how they company deals with their clients.’

‘My working relationship with Flynn O’Driscoll (especially Kieran Kelly) is one I value beyond anything. There was a trust built very quickly and the level of professionalism provided from the firm was second to none. The communication knowledge and advice given was exceptional. Kieran and the team’s services was consistently at the top level of excellence and professionalism. ’

‘The depth of expertise of the team is what makes them stand out in the media arena together with a very commercial and collaborative approach.’

‘David Phelan is a stand out. He is commercial and easy to work with while having a breadth of legal knowledge. He is able to get transactions over the line.’

‘Attention to detail, thoroughness on the law, integrity, promptness of service.’

‘David Phelan and Joe O’Malley both demonstrate legal competence, breadth of knowledge, speed of advice, and attention to detail.’

‘The team are very strong technically and provide a high quality service and value for money. The customer service in unrivalled. They tailor solutions to complex legal challenges for our business.’

‘We are involved in a number of cases to protect the the business and to manage reputational risk. These are being litigated in the High Court currently. We are using the services of Mark O’Shaughnessy, who has an excellent legal mind and who is highly responsive to client needs in the area of defamation. This is a new area of litigation for the business and Mark is very strong at ensuring complex legal matters are explained in clear and concise language so that the business can make informed decisions in terms of strategy and tactics.’

‘The partners and solicitors working within the Media and Entertainment department of Byrne Wallace are all highly specialised and leaders in their field. They are extremely knowledgeable in this area of law and can be relied upon to provide expert guidance and advice in a very prompt and timely manner.’

‘I have also worked with Mark O’Shaughnessy who is top-class in the area of copyright law.’

‘We value their extent of knowledge and breadth of ability; they are very approachable and very commercial.’

‘Rachel Shanley is a brilliant lawyer and a really shrewd advisor. ’