Dentons Ireland LLP > Dublin, Ireland > Profile

Dentons Ireland LLP Offices

Dentons Ireland LLP
20 KILDARE STREET
DUBLIN 2
Ireland
Visit website +353 1 582 8100

Dentons Ireland LLP > The Legal 500 Rankings

Ireland > Commercial, corporate and M&A Tier 2

Dentons Ireland LLP has made a considerable impact on the market, in part thanks to the presence of two senior figures in Dublin managing partner Eavan Saunders and head of corporate Shane O’Donnell. The two are at the forefront of cross-border M&A, private equity transactions and venture capital investments, and have been joined in Dublin by Garrett Hayes, a former partner at McDermott Will & Emery UK LLP in London. Since launching a Dublin office in 2020, the firm has already advised on a series of headline transactions, including a number of deals for the Irish Infrastructure Fund.

Practice head(s):

Shane O’Donnell; Eavan Saunders

Other key lawyers:

Garrett Hayes; Ciaran O’Boyle; David McGuinness

Testimonials

‘The team is a sum of its parts – Eavan Saunders is building up a first class capability in the corporate team.’

‘In Ciaran O’Boyle and David McGuinness, Eavan Saunders is building a very capable team with significant technical and intellectual prowess.’

‘Dentons stands out for its truly global reach, with an unmatched network of offices in over 80 countries, allowing the firm to offer seamless, cross-border legal services. Clients benefit from Dentons’ deep sector expertise across a wide range of industries, including energy, technology, and finance. The firm is known for its innovative approach to client service which enhances its ability to deliver well-rounded, commercially-focused solutions compared to other firms.’

‘The individuals at Dentons stand out for their exceptional legal expertise, combined with a deep understanding of clients’ industries and commercial objectives. What sets them apart from competitors is their ability to seamlessly collaborate across Dentons’ vast global network, while maintaining a local focus tailored to specific client needs.’

‘Great client management, extremely helpful and attentive service. Junior members of the team are strong and consistently play an important role in transactions, which often is not the case. ’

‘Good commercial acumen, rounded skillset, personable and a valuable extension of our team. It is important that lawyers don’t become a source of friction on an acquisition and I am always comfortable that our business and values will be well-represented by the Dentons team.’

Key clients

InfraBridge Investors (UK)

LC Financial Holdings

IBI Corporate Finance

Corlytics

Xerotech

ACT Venture Capital

Version 1 Solutions

Snowfall

Ekco Cloud

GH Research

Zetland Capital Partners

Doran & Minehane

Harwood Private Capital

ProVerum

Work highlights

  • Advised the Irish Infrastructure Fund’s on the disposal of a portfolio of Irish assets.
  • Advised IBI Corporate Finance on its acquisition by Daiwa Corporate Advisory European Holdings.
  • Advised the shareholders of Cubic on the acquisition by Softbank Corp of a 51% stake in Cubic.

Ireland > Dispute resolution Tier 2

Dentons Ireland LLP has made considerable progress in the Irish dispute resolution market, now with a strong senior bench of prominent partners, including Karyn Harty who is global co-chair of disputes. The firm has boosted its standing in financial services, corporate and real estate disputes, and is a growing force in regulatory investigations and enforcement. Gareth Steen has an established record in contentious insolvency and restructuring, while Ciara FitzGerald is noted for commercial  disputes, regulatory and other investigations. Gemma Freeman provides further expertise in real estate cases, corporate recovery disputes and shareholder litigation. Counsel Lesley Caplin delivers additional senior-level expertise.

Practice head(s):

Karyn Harty; Gareth Steen

Other key lawyers:

Ciara FitzGerald; Lesley Caplin; Gemma Freeman

Testimonials

‘An excellent team made up of exceptional professionals.’

‘Available at short notice and very responsive. Gareth Steen was particularly interested in the case.’

Work highlights

Ireland > Banking and finance Tier 3

Dentons Ireland LLP has built a sizeable team featuring a number of experienced and highly-rated partners. It has earned recognition for its strength in acquisition and leveraged finance, corporate lending, real estate and leveraged finance, project finance, and structured finance and securitisation. It is also a growing force in aviation finance. It frequently advises large domestic and international banks, challenger banks and debt funds, along with sponsor-side clients. The banking and finance team, includes four partners that all have experience of working overseas and at Ireland’s largest firms. Peter O’Brien is a leading name in leveraged finance, with Siobhan Carlin noted for real estate and development finance. Matthew Cahill brings further structured finance and securitisation expertise to the team. Donal Keane, promoted to partner in 2023, specialises in asset finance.

Practice head(s):

Peter O’Brien

Other key lawyers:

Siobhan Carlin; Matthew Cahill; Donal Keane; Colm Ó hUiginn

Testimonials

‘The only firm that offers Irish, as well as UK and continental legal advice, as a one-stop-shop.’

‘Matthew Cahill provides an outstanding service in Ireland.’

‘Global reach and responsiveness.’

‘Client service and sector expertise.’

‘The banking and finance practice at Dentons Ireland is growing and becoming more prominent. Dentons have made a strong effort to expand their offerings and are able to provide both Irish and English law advice. Having a large global network is another plus.’

‘Donal Keane gained experience at one of the Magic Circle firms in London and brings excellent technical skills to the table. He is also very commercially minded.’ 

‘We were working mostly with two partners who were our day-to-day contacts on the transaction, along with one or two associates. The deep involvement and sound advice of the partners clearly stood out and brought a lot of value. ’

‘We worked with Siobhan Carlin and Colm Ó hUiginn on our transaction. We valued the quality of their advice, their proactiveness and their strong stance on specific issues – they clearly pointed out when an issue was serious (and defended the position accordingly) or when something was of secondary importance. This allowed for a smooth and efficient process with the client.’

Key clients

Zetland Capital

Monaghan Mushrooms

Auxmoney

Värde Partners

TUI Group

Airbus

Globe Trade Centre

IBI Corporate Finance

KKR

Real I.S.

Credit Suisse (Switzerland)

ORIX Aviation Systems

Minsheng Financial Leasing Co

Chorus Aviation Capital

UBS AG London Branch

Credit Suisse (Switzerland)

Xerotech Limited

Fly4 Airlines (Ireland)

CMB Financial Leasing Co

Wizz Air

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce

Work highlights

  • Advised on all aspects of the refinancing of the Monaghan Mushrooms Group.
  • Acted for Värde Partners on a €70m loan to the Moran Group for the refinancing of commercial real estate assets in Dublin.
  • Advised Auxmoney Investments Limited on the $544m securitisation of German peer to peer consumer loans.

Ireland > Insolvency and corporate restructuring Tier 3

Dentons Ireland LLP has a major focus on insolvency and restructuring within its Dublin office, particularly noted for its representation of prominent insolvency practitioners. As part of an international practice, the Dublin team frequently represents clients in cross-border insolvencies and restructurings. Gareth Steen is a senior specialist in the field and frequently acts for insolvency practitioners as liquidators, along with appointments as examiners and receivers. Gemma Freeman also has a history of working on large-scale restructurings and insolvencies.

Practice head(s):

Gareth Steen

Other key lawyers:

Gemma Freeman

Work highlights

Ireland > White-collar crime Tier 3

Dentons Ireland LLP acts for a diverse list of international and domestic clients in the full range of contentious and non-contentious fraud and business crime matters. Dispute practice head Karyn Harty specialises in regulatory and criminal investigations, while Gareth Steen leads the restructuring and insolvency team.

Practice head(s):

Karyn Harty; Gareth Steen

Other key lawyers:

Ciara FitzGerald; Tiernan Nix

Testimonials

‘Karyn Harty is the market leader. Karyn is one of my top go-to lawyers.’

‘The team is very efficient.’

‘We have worked with Ciara FitzGerald and Tiernan Nix. They have high-level skills and at the same time are extremely open and friendly.’

Key clients

Ennovate and Bosai

The IRONMAN Group

Dany Boon

Frasers Group

Marks and Spencer

Irish Life

Airbus

Work highlights

  • Represented Ennovate and Bosai in Irish injunction proceedings regarding an allegation of fraud by FMGSL and ultimately secured payment out on a letter of credit and secured the withdrawal of an appeal by FMGSL.
  • Represented IRONMAN in several matters arising from two tragic fatalities in the swim element of Ironman Cork 2023, including in an independent review being conducted by Grant Thornton and an inquest into the deaths.
  • Represented Dany Boon, a French actor, director and comedian, in a multi-million euro claim for damages for fraud before the Irish Commercial Court.

Ireland > Real estate Tier 4

Domestic and international retailers, real estate developers, and investors turn to Dentons Ireland LLP for assistance with major acquisitions and disposals across the healthcare, data centres, and logistics sectors. Andrew Muckian leads the group and is adept at advising on all kinds of property development and investment transactions.

Practice head(s):

Andrew Muckian

Key clients

Irish Life Assurance PLC

Marks & Spencer Ireland Limited

Zetland Capital Partners

AIG Global Real Estate

Crown Square Developments Limited

Real IS AG

Globe Trade Centre

Silver Stream Healthcare Group

GIC EQT Exeter

AMP Capital

Savills Commercial Ireland Limited

Aventicum Capital

Round Hill Capital

Ireland > Tax

Ireland > Energy and natural resources

The energy team at Dentons Ireland LLP, established with the 2022 arrival of project development, finance, and M&A expert Colm Ó hUiginn, acts for major global sponsors and lenders across the renewable energy and green fuels spaces.

Ireland > Projects and PPP

The trio of Colm Ó hUiginn, Eavan Saunders, and Siobhan Carlin co-heads the project and PPP practice at Dentons Ireland LLP, which acts for a diverse set of international and domestic clients on various projects.  

Lawyer Profiles

Photo Name Position Profile
Mairéadh Dale photo Mairéadh Dale Partner View Profile
Gemma Freeman photo Gemma Freeman Gemma is a member of the Dispute Resolution and Insolvency practice. She… View Profile
Mary Liz Mahony photo Mary Liz Mahony Counsel View Profile
Andrew Muckian photo Andrew Muckian Partner / Head of Real Estate Dublin View Profile
Peter O'Brien photo Peter O'Brien Head of Finance View Profile
Shane O’Donnell photo Shane O’Donnell Head of Corporate View Profile
Eavan Saunders photo Eavan Saunders Office Managing Partner View Profile
Gareth Steen photo Gareth Steen Head of Restructuring View Profile


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