IFLR 1000
The Guide to the World's Leading Financial Law Firms

	A&L Goodbody Arthur Cox McCann FitzGerald
	Matheson Ormsby Prentice
	Eversheds Mason Hayes & Curran William Fry
	LK Shields

"Frankly, the last 12 months here it's been grim," says one project finance lawyer. According to infrastructure journal nine project finance deals closed in Ireland in 2010: "It's a very low figure for an island of this size and it's a very, very tough market at the moment," explains the lawyer. Divided in to two broad categories, infrastructure and energy; both have been besieged by challenges thrown up by the crisis, albeit distinct ones.

There is a significant pipeline of substantial PPP projects but the challenge has been securing private sector debt for these plans, which are underwritten by a sovereign guarantee. "There's just a concern about the worthiness of the Irish state at the moment. PPP projects have been suffering because to the extent they are backed by the state the sovereign risk element has meant that non-Irish banks are reluctant to take Irish risk," says one lawyer.

The long awaited rail projects have also fallen foul of banks reluctance to become entangled in the country's problems. One of the most prominent deals to suffer is the Metro project in Dublin. "On the big rail projects they all look to be dead at the moment. A €3 billion Metro project in Ireland is unfortunately desperately needed infrastructure but it's just a level of debt Ireland can't handle right now," says one lawyer.

Smaller PPP projects, deemed essential, in the education and healthcare sector have had more luck, with one lawyer speculating that the government may have, "Asked them to pull on the national jersey." In this vein, The new cystic fibrosis unit at St Vincents Hospital and the second schools project, comprising of five new buildings on four sites, achieved financial close in June and November 2010, respectively.

Activity on the energy side has been driven by the push towards renewables and the picture is a little more positive. "I suppose the wind deals in particular, there is a greater appetite for them than the pure PPP deals. People are seeing the support mechanisms for wind and utility revenue pool that sits behind that are somewhat removed from the sovereign so people are more comfortable."

A further impediment for project finance lawyers concerns REFIT 2. The state Renewable Energy Feed-in-Tariff is being amended and state approval is pending. There is anxiousness surrounding it amid speculation it is to be cut. "From an Irish specific perspective there's some regulatory uncertainty in relation to renewable support schemes beyond 2025, which given that you need those to fund projects over at least 15 years, is causing a little uncertainty at the moment," says one lawyer.

Clients are all too aware of the shortage of mandates available for law firms and with practises vying for client's business, another thing that is depreciating is fees. As the head of one project finance practice observes: "The market is very price competitive at the moment. In a very crude way, the amount we're making for transactions wasn't what it was a few years ago. When you've got the same number of firms bidding for half the number of deals, you're never going to get as much as you used to."

A&L Goodbody has one of the most respected project finance practices in Ireland, which has made a name for itself in PPP (public-private partnership) and energy projects. The firm's leading figures, practice head Kevin Feeney and partner Ross Moore, are seen to have played no small part in this and garner high acclaim from their peers: "Kevin and Ross are both very good, they are both active and continue to close deals and are both deserving of a mention," says one lawyer.... [more]

A&L Goodbody has one of the most respected project finance practices in Ireland, which has made a name for itself in PPP (public-private partnership) and energy projects. The firm's leading figures, practice head Kevin Feeney and partner Ross Moore, are seen to have played no small part in this and garner high acclaim from their peers: "Kevin and Ross are both very good, they are both active and continue to close deals and are both deserving of a mention," says one lawyer. Another has equal respect for the pair: "Kevin is very well known around town for his project finance work and Kevin is pragmatic and an incredibly nice guy to deal with."

Peers, however, feel the practice has been one of those hit hardest by the difficulties in the market: "A&L Goodbody is an excellent team. They've closed some good deals in Northern Ireland over the last couple of years including one this year, the Lagan College project. I think the difficulty for them is the Northern Ireland education programme has finished and the big metro project they are involved in down here can't go ahead in the current climate. While they are an excellent team, the pipeline really is bare for them," remarks one lawyer.

Looking solely at the statistics, the firm is behind the others in tier one in regard to deals closed in the last 12 months, with the aforementioned Lagan Tor Bank College in Northern Ireland project the only notable deal it has finalised. The market recommended Kevin Feeney advised on the novel £30 million financing, which provided for the construction, maintenance and operation for two schools, Lagan College and Tor Bank, accommodation and sports facilities. Completed in March 2011 on behalf of the Northern Ireland PPP Education Service, Lagan College was the first PFI (private finance initiative) project in Ireland to be financed by way of a pension product provided by Aviva.

The practice does however have a number of mandates at various stages of completion. One such ongoing deal is the Dart Underground Project. The new railway is intended to link the overground with new light rail systems and the existing underground system. Kevin Feeney and Eamonn Conlon are advising the contractors, Coras Iompair Eireann (CIE), on the €3 billion deal. In 2010 the pair were advising on the design, access, environmental liability, operation and maintenance issues that have been raised by the prospect of two underground rail lines overlapping.

Another project pending, in which Feeney is advising the contractors the DirectRoute Consortium, is the €300 million N17 PPP road project.

Where these deals will be in 12 months time is impossible to predict, but for now there is nothing to suggest that the firm is not capable of advising on the market's paramount mandates and clients testify to this.

"In general they are always proactive and capable of dealing with what we are asking for," says one. Another, who said Feeney was currently handling two proposals for them, gave this reference: "He's very knowledgeable in respect to the PPP schemes. We always get a very competent and timely response. Even in difficult situations he's coming up with proposals and has a very realistic down to earth approach and, in particular, with infrastructure projects this is very helpful. He's well connected as well, which helps. Particularly on the Irish deals when you need to discuss things with the legal authorities."

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Widely recognised as the most active firm on the market, Arthur Cox is recognised for its excellent relationships in both the public and private sector and has completed a strong portfolio of PPP (public-private partnership) and renewable energy projects in a challenging 12 months for the country's project finance lawyers. The practice is led by Alex McLean, an energy specialist, who is regarded as an expert in his field: "He does energy and energy regulatory work and he does it very well," says one peer.... [more]

Widely recognised as the most active firm on the market, Arthur Cox is recognised for its excellent relationships in both the public and private sector and has completed a strong portfolio of PPP (public-private partnership) and renewable energy projects in a challenging 12 months for the country's project finance lawyers.

The practice is led by Alex McLean, an energy specialist, who is regarded as an expert in his field: "He does energy and energy regulatory work and he does it very well," says one peer. Partner Garrett Monaghan is also commended by peers who see him as an industrious lawyer with a broad range of capabilities: "Garrett covers an awful lot of bases and does an awful lot of deals," says one lawyer.

Social infrastructure has fared better than most areas during the financial crisis in Ireland and a deal highlight for the firm came when it achieved financial close for the Schools Bundle Two PPP, which comprised five schools on four sites for almost 5000 pupils, in June 2010. Aaron Boyle and Jenny Fisher advised the National Development Finance Agency on the €100 million project which was co-funded by Bank of Ireland and NIBC Bank with the European Investment Bank. It was the only PPP in Ireland to go into and survive a default thanks to the novel structure in place and the first to attract European Investment Bank funding in Ireland since 2007.

On the renewable energy side, the team closed two wind farm deals recently. Monaghan advised Ulster Bank Ireland on providing the debt facilities for an offshore wind farm in the UK for Mainstream Renewable Group, which was finalised in January 2011. Practice head McLean is also still active and combined with banking partner Grainne Hennessy to advise Viridian Group on securing the financing for its portfolio of windfarms. It was the largest project financing of a windfarm in Northern Ireland when the £60 million deal closed in November 2010.

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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.... [more]

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.

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Key partner David Quinlon's departure from Matheson Ormsby Prentice in December 2010 is seen as a loss by commentators who regarded him as the firm's most visible lawyer in this area. Several expect the practice head Michael O'Connor to take the reins on deals and consider him a worthy replacement, although some questioned how active he has been recently.... [more]

Key partner David Quinlon's departure from Matheson Ormsby Prentice in December 2010 is seen as a loss by commentators who regarded him as the firm's most visible lawyer in this area. Several expect the practice head Michael O'Connor to take the reins on deals and consider him a worthy replacement, although some questioned how active he has been recently. "At MOP the chap who has done the most project finance work, David Quinlon, has left to go back to London, which leaves them in a bit of a difficult spot in terms of who's going to be the person who fronts that. Michael O'Connor would be the head of the practice and I think he is going to be the one that is going to have to step in and fill that space. My own view of Michael is that he is very hard working, he's very diligent, he's very good."

The firm's highlight deal saw it acting for the successful bidder, Macquarie Partnerships, in relation to the School Bundle 2 PPP (public-private partnership) of six new schools providing places for close to 5000 pupils. This project was the first Irish PPP since the downturn to involve European Investment Bank financing. Partners Patrick Molloy and Lynn English closed the €150 million deal in June 2010.

A follow on instruction generated by this successful transaction has seen the firm instructed by Macquarie to bid for the Schools Bundle 3 PPP, which encapsulates eight schools on seven sites.

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Belying its comparatively small size, Mason Hayes & Curran holds a good share of the energy market in Ireland.The firm's prominence in this sphere has not gone unnoticed: "Second to us on the energy side is Mason Hayes & Curran.... [more]

Belying its comparatively small size, Mason Hayes & Curran holds a good share of the energy market in Ireland.

The firm's prominence in this sphere has not gone unnoticed: "Second to us on the energy side is Mason Hayes & Curran. I think they deserve to be higher up the tiers," says one competitor, who is a fan of practice head Will Carmody. The lawyer continues: "In terms of lawyer league tables and who has closed the most deals in Ireland this year [2010]; second would be Will Carmody and I think he deserves a mention for the sheer volume of work he's doing."

Carmody has led the firm on all its most significant deals lately. He closed the financing of Bawnmore wind farm; a 25MW project in County Cork completed on a club basis between the two funding banks for €38 million in December 2010. Later that month he also finalised the deal for Reirk wind farm, acting for Norddeutsche Landesbank in respect of the €39 million financing.

On another deal on the side of the banks Carmody and his team advised Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) on the addition of a new €10 million project, Corkermore wind farm, into the existing portfolio of Eco Wind Power, Viridian's renewable energy subsidiary.

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Eversheds has secured a good proportion of the renewable energy mandates in Ireland last 12 months. Competitors regard the firm as reliable with "decent lawyers".... [more]

Eversheds has secured a good proportion of the renewable energy mandates in Ireland last 12 months. Competitors regard the firm as reliable with "decent lawyers".

One interesting deal, and incidentally the firm's largest, saw partner Kerri Crossen and Angelyn Rowan and practice head Mark Varian advise on the €80 million development of waste infrastructure and housing units of the Spencer Dock, which was critical to the opening of the new International Convention Centre in Dublin.

The practice head has been active recently and also closed the €50 million financing of Reirk Energy's 28MW Dromdeeveen Wind Farm in December 2010.

Existing deals that needed refinancing also occupied the firm. Varian and Daniel Mueller helped Nord LB and Commerzbank negotiate new terms for the €40 million Gortahile Wind Farm in June 2010 while Steve Rodgers led a team to act for AIB and Barclays on the €50 million refinancing of Ballybane Wind Farm in October 2010.

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Unlike its competitors, William Fry's recent activity has predominantly involved commercial and real estate ventures.The most substantial deal the firm was handling was the Dublin Central Development, which will incorporate the flagship department store John Lewis, new public squares, streets, 100 retail units, and a new visitor attraction.... [more]

Unlike its competitors, William Fry's recent activity has predominantly involved commercial and real estate ventures.

The most substantial deal the firm was handling was the Dublin Central Development, which will incorporate the flagship department store John Lewis, new public squares, streets, 100 retail units, and a new visitor attraction. It will be the largest mixed-use commercial development of its type ever undertaken in Ireland.

Elsewhere, department head Liam McCabe and Jarleth Heneghan were advising Chartered Land on securing financing of up to €1 billion, while Heneghan was also advising Chartered Land on its plans for the redevelopment of the ILAC Centre Shopping Centre.

Another significant deal saw McCabe and Orla Brennan assist Harry Crosbie on The Point Village Development in Dublin Docklands. When completed, the 12 acre site will encompass retail and office units, a hotel and open air concert stage and the 'Dublin Wheel' attraction.

Partners Heneghan and Brennan also continued to counsel developer Ramford on its Grand Canal Square plans for the Dublin Docklands, which has an anticipated capital construction cost of approximately €250 million.

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