Sinead McGrath > Carson McDowell > Belfast, Northern Ireland > Lawyer Profile

Carson McDowell’s standout strengths are in real estate finance, SME lending and project finance. It is frequently instructed to act as the Northern Irish counsel on cross-border finance transactions. Clients include major Irish banks, as well as Citigroup and Bank of America/Merril Lynch. Sinead McGrath, who leads the team, recently advised Linen Mill Studios on its loan facilities from Whiterock Finance towards the development of the Game of Thrones Studio Tour in Northern Ireland. McGrath works with senior associates Emma Copeland (who specialises in real estate finance) and Orla Hanna, who was hired from Baker McKenzie in 2020, and focuses on real estate and energy finance. Associate Fearghal McVey is another key individual.

Carson McDowell has a diverse offering and particularly stands out for its expertise in advising private equity houses on energy investments; it assisted Brookfield Renewables with its investments in Northern Ireland. Other core areas of focus for the group span wind energy work, natural gas mandates and electricity regulations. The team is led by Neasa Quigley, who is an expert in corporate energy deals. Corporate partner Gerard Armstrong is also active in this area, along with planning specialist Gary McGhee, financing expert Sinead McGrath, as well as property experts Emma Cooper and Dawson McConkey.

Carson McDowell is able to leverage its strengths across a number of disciplines to provide full-service support on the entire ambit of contentious and non-contentious mandates. Its client roster includes insolvency practitioners, banks, corporates and directors. The core restructuring and insolvency team is ably supported by practitioners in areas such as banking and finance, corporate, employment, property and litigation. It is a strong choice for advice on a myriad of complex mandates, including administrations, bankruptcies, receiverships and liquidations. In addition, the group also handles restructurings, as well as debt and asset recovery work. Darren Toombs is highly skilled in insolvency litigation and other recovery-related matters, and he is experienced in advising liquidators, trustees in bankruptcy and administrators. Toombs co-heads the practice with Sinead McGrath, who is knowledgeable about all aspects of solvent and insolvent restructurings.