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Market perception of McCann FitzGerald is unanimously positive and the firm's rank is undisputed. Crisis driven work has dominated the firm's deal flow and it has played a key role in a number of challenging mandates for Irish financial institutions.

Partners Julian Conlon and Aidan Lawlor closed two significant transactions for Allied Irish Bank (AIB) in the past 12 months as part of wider capital measures undertaken by the bank to meet enhanced capital standards imposed by the Irish Financial Regulator. In November 2010, the team advised on the class 1 sale of its $2 billion shareholding in NYSE listed M&T Bank. The disposal utilised a public offering in the US of $26.7 million exchangeable notes. The notes were governed by New York law and were listed on the NYSE. On the third business day after receipt of shareholder approval, each note was exchanged for one M&T share. The other deal saw the trio advising on NPRFC's (National Pensions Reserve Funds Commission) €3.8 billion equity investment in the bank. Part of the deal involved Allied Irish (AIB) handing over its shareholding in its Polish publicly listed operations, Bank Zachodni, which necessitated issuing a new class of convertible non-voting shares to the NPRFC to avoid issues under Polish takeover law. AIB had to de-list from the main markets of the Irish and London stock exchanges and list on the ESM market of the Irish Stock Exchange requiring preparation of an admission document.

Another notable equity deal saw the acting for Independent News & Media on its €29.3 million cash placing in November 2010.

Since the implementation of the CISA (Credit Institution (Stabilisation) Act) the Irish High Court has issued a number of orders to ensure financial intuitions meet capital requirements and the firm were employed to assist the banks on the receiving end of one. A team consisting of partners Julian Conlon, Roy Parker, Hugh Beattie and Adrian Farrell acted for Anglo Irish Bank and INBS on the sale of €12.2 billion worth of deposits and Nama bonds from Anglo Irish Bank to AIB and from INBS to Permanent TSB, the banking business of Irish Life & Permanent, in February 2011. Partner Hugh Beattie also advised INBS on its €4 billion Irish Government Guaranteed Bond in October 2010.

Since 2008, when Lehman Brothers collapsed, partner Fergus Gillen has been advising a group of Irish special purpose entities known as the Dante established by the company to issue structured notes under a debt programme. The firm has been assisting Dante group companies in negotiating with The Bank of New York Mellon, which acts as trustee on behalf of the creditors of these entities, to permit them to continue as going concerns. The deal is ongoing but in 2010 note issuances, with a combined value of approximately €700 million, were settled consensually.

Heavily admired by competitors, McCann FitzGerald warrants a tier of its own according to some: "In my mind McCann's are ahead of the rest in terms of the banking space. In terms of quality of the work they do. They've got an awful lot of good people on a lot of good deals," says one peer. Another lawyer values the range of experts they have with a variety of competencies: "Derivatives, lots of the different types of financing, they would have specialisations across the board," remarks the lawyer.

Competitors single out Niall Powderly, who was active for Wells Fargo in 2010, as an exceptional lawyer: "Excellent and decent to be on the other side of a deal with," is one lawyers assessment. Powderly advised the US bank on providing financing for the $130 million acquisition Trintech to Spectrum Investors.

Aviation finance, a lucrative niche which is central to several of the leading banking practises, is an area where McCann FitzGerald is extolled: "I would say McCann FitzGerald have a premier aircraft practice. Hilary Marren is technically excellent with a very broad industry knowledge which makes her practical and reasonable and excellent to deal with," remarks one competitor, adding: "Catherine Deane would also certainly be very well respected as an aircraft lawyer and be regarded as very effective." The team has been advising on several deals in this area, which at the time of writing were confidential.

A highlight deal came for the firm in September 2010 when Fergus Gillen led a team advising the Electricity Supply Board on a €970 million syndicated loan with 15 international and Irish banks. The facilities consist of an acquisition loan of approximately €970 million which was used to part-fund the acquisition of the Northern Ireland Electricity networks business from Viridian Group.

A team comprising partners Roy Parker, David Lydon, David Byers and Adrian Farrell advised long-standing client Anglo Irish Bank on a succession of promissory notes in 2010. The first at a value of €8.3 billion and two subsequent increases of €2 billion in May 2010 and €8.6 billion in August.

Head of McCann FitzGerald's investment management group, Mark White, elicits positive responses from commentators, who consider him a leading individual at the firm and within the funds arena. The top tier still eludes the firm, however as is it is perceived to lack the number of experienced lawyers requisite for this category. "I have a lot of high regard for Mark White but McCann's is a very small practice and I don't think they are as strong as some firms that have more dedicated funds partners who have more experience than say McCann's has," says one partner.

The firm has secured several notable ongoing mandates and White is at the helm on all of them. The team was appointed as project manager and legal advisers to HFR's umbrella QIF (qualified investment fund) and Ucits (undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities) fund, which are established as a unit trust and a self-managed investment company, respectively. Intended for clients and investors who need a product domiciled and regulated in the EU, the QIF was launched with two initial sub-funds and the Ucits was launched with one.

Acting for Global Spectrum, a Cayman exempted company, and its investment adviser, III Offshore Fund Advisors, the firm have been advising on domiciling the fund in Ireland, under the new measures that were introduced into Irish Law in 2010 which enables a fund to move onshore by way of continuation as an Irish investment company authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland.

In other notable deals, White advised PGGM investment management on establishing an Irish fund of funds platform managed by Lyxor, the asset management group of French bank Société Générale, and he continued to advise on the JO Hambro managed Dublin Ucits umbrella and launched the OHCM All Europe Dynamic Growth Fund in February 2011.

A client of Darragh Murphy, who was promoted to partner in 2010, could not fault the firm in any area, saying: "Technical capabilities are fantastic, no issues whatsoever. They've been incredibly valuable they are very commercial minded so that they raise the technical issues but in a way that can move the business forward and get transactions done."

Deliberation over where McCann FitzGerald should rank divides opinion. That the firm offers the highest quality advice is undisputed. "I think tier two is harsh on them there are some very good lawyers in there," remarks one peer.

Similarly, the firm elicits praise from clients who agree the firm has the talent to deal with the most significant mandates: "They have a much smaller team [than A&L Goodbody] but the lawyers there are very focussed. They have a very collegiate style. I have a very high regard and highly recommend them as a law firm," says one client. In regard to pricing clients look on the firm more favourably than those above it, although there is not too much between the final bill, one says: "McCann's would take a more pragmatic approach to pricing."

The firm had a strong year in which it completed a diverse portfolio of distressed and new work.

"McCanns are doing well in the financial services sector," explains one lawyer in reference to the firm's recent mandates on behalf of several troubled Irish banks. Allied Irish Bank instructed the firm on two transactions, which formed part of the bank's recapitalisation programme. Barry Devereux, Aidan Lawlor and Julian Conlon advised on both deals, firstly representing the bank on the sale of its shareholding in M&T Bank Corporation, a US listed commercial banking business, which closed for $2 billion in November 2010. More recently, in December, the trio negotiated for the bank on the government's €3.8 billion injection of capital under the Credit Institutions (Stabilisation) Act 2010. It was the first use of this new legislation, which had been enacted just two days prior to the transaction closing.

In a public deal, the firm advised Aercap on a sale of 20% shares to Waha Capital. Hilary Marren and M&A head David Lydon closed the deal, which amounted to 29.8 million shares in exchange for $105 million in cash, Waha's 50% interest in AerVenture and the transfer of a 40% interest in Waha's 16-aircraft portfolio, in October 2010.

In a public mandate partner David Byers advised BAE Systems, a global defence and security company, on its acquisition of Aim and ESM-listed Norkom Group for €217 million and was effected by a takeover offer under the Irish Takeover Rules.

Head of Corporate, Devereux, is singled out consistently by peers who enjoy working on the opposite team to him, while clients prefer to have him on their side. "He's very easy to get on with. He understands clients and he is just a very, very strong lawyer," says one client.

McCann FitzGerald is renowned for its exceptional PPP (public-private partnership) team, which leverages off its leading banking practice and is regarded as one of the leaders in this field. "McCann FitzGerald in my view would have set the bench mark on PPP in Ireland. They've got a very good team and they remain very strong. They perform well in the league tables every year solely on the back of their PPP practice," observes one lawyer. Competitors do, however, question the firm's visibility on the energy side of the market.

The firm's leading light is seen as partner Colm Fanning, other recommended lawyers are also singled for praise by peers. "Colm Fanning is without question the outstanding projects partner there. Eamon and Claire Lenny would be the other two that would certainly rate a mention," says one lawyer.

Commensurate with the firm's reputation in PPP work, McCann FitzGerald has closed two of the most prominent deals in the region in the last 12 months. Fanning acted for the lenders, the European Investment Bank, Bank of Ireland and NIBC, on the Schools Bundle 2 PPP. The project, which was completed in June 2010, involved a complicated structure between two contractors as there were concerns about the financial position of one contractor, which went in to insolvency. Bespoke step-in arrangements and allocation of risk between the two contractors had been enacted which ensured the project did not collapse.

Fanning was involved in an additional high profile PPP project, which reached financial close in November 2010. Acting for Bank of Ireland, he advised on the €20 million financing for constructing a new cystic fibrosis unit at St Vincent's Hospital.

In an ongoing deal, O'Hanrahan and Fanning are advising the National Roads Authority (NRA) in relation to all aspects of the second PPP roads programme, which includes two projects at advanced stage; the N11 and N17.

McCann FitzGerald have extensive experience in restructuring, workouts and insolvency on behalf of both banks and creditors and have continued to secure roles in some of the country's leading cases in the last 12 months.

Head of the practice Jane Marshall is singled out by lawyers and clients as one of the foremost insolvency lawyers in the country. One client sees her talents as more specific: "If there's something international or intellectual Jane Marshall is the best lawyer in Ireland for that," says the client.

In a role for an international client, Marshall and David Byers have taken the lead acting for US private equity firm, Oaktree Capital, which is trying to invest in McInerney Group, one of Ireland's largest house-building companies, which is under examinership. The high court rejected the investment on the grounds it was unfair to the existing creditors and the company went in to receivership in July 2011.

A standout debt-for-equity restructuring has seen Michael Murphy and Philip Andrews acting for Anglo Irish Bank and RBS in the restructuring of the €200 million facilities advanced to Arnotts Holdings that has resulted in the banks taking joint control of this Irish retailer. This was the first Irish debt restructuring to trigger an EU merger control filing and was cleared by the European Commission in August 2010.

Murphy is acting for Anglo Irish Bank, an Isle of Man subsidiary of the Irish Bank, in challenging the jurisdiction of the Irish High Court to hear a petition by Pauline Doyle, a former director who owes the bank approximately €2 million. In a first for the Irish High Court it will rule on whether a scheme of arrangement is a recognised insolvency proceeding within the meaning of the European insolvency regulation.

In ongoing role Marshall and Paul Heffernan are acting for the joint administrators of the of insurance company the Quinn Group advising on all regulatory and corporate issues relevant to the licensing, running and potential sale of the multi-billion euro insurance business.