A&L Goodbody is a leading Irish firm with a strong reputation across the board. Headquartered in Dublin, the firm also has offices in New York, Belfast, London, San Francisco and Palo Alto.
Focusses / specialisms
The company boasts a highly skilled and commercially oriented legal teams that excel in all areas of practice listed in the ranking tables. In the banking sector, the firm demonstrates strength in lending operations for both lenders and borrowers, possess expertise in regulatory matters and maintains a top-tier asset finance practice in the market.
In addition, the firm has established strong relationships with prominent Irish banks and has been involved in numerous significant Irish loan portfolio sales since the financial crisis.
The corporate group actively participates in the substantial proportion of major cross border M&A transactions involving Irish businesses or assets.
The firm frequently has a tangible impact in sectors such as banking, energy, pharmaceuticals, real estate, and technology.
Key clients
The firm’s banking clientele includes Natwest, Inflexion PE Partners, Voyager Avaiation Management, Endo International, Bank of Ireland, Icon, National Westminster Bank, Ulter Bank Ireland and the Bank of Nova Scotia.
In the realm of capital markets, the firm collaborated with Blackbird Capital II Aircraft, Merx Avaition Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Bank of Ireland, Mulcair Securities, Permanent, AIB Group and Fresenius & Co and Bosch Thermotechnik.
Regarding investment funds, the firm provided services to BIT Capital, Kepler Partners, Zurich Invest, Commerzbank, Comeragh Capital and Comeragh ICAV, River and Mercantile, Stenham Investment Funds, and Aviva Investors.
In terms of financial services regulatory matters, the firm worked with Aviva Group Holdings, ERGO Versicherung, Zurich Life Assurance, Extend Warranty Services, and Försäkringsaktiebolaget Agria.
The firm's project development clients include Parkwind, Iberdrola, Transport Infrastructure Ireland, UCD Property Development Company, FCC, and John Sisk & Son.
Research period review: 33rd edition (2023/2024)
During the research period the firm was active in all areas including asset financing, banking, capital markets, financial service regulatory, M&A, project development, project finance and restructuring.
Within the field of asset finance, the firm primarily provided advisory services to borrowers in the aviation industry. Its expertise encompassed a range of areas, including asset-backed note offerings and securities issues, acquisition, direct financing and even examinership-related matters.
In banking and finance, the firm offered guidance to both borrowers and lenders concerning direct financing and refinancing. It provided valuable advice on various aspects, including commercial loans and acquisition financing, and played a significant role in numerous billion-dollar deals.
In the field of project finance, the firm extended its expertise to sponsors and lenders involved in projects primarily focused on the social infrastructure and energy sectors. Its advisory services in this area proved instrumental in ensuring successful project execution and financial viability.
In capital markets the firm has gained global recognition in the field of capital markets, establishing its reputation as a trusted advisor for intricate capital market matters spanning Ireland, the UK, the US, Europe, and Asia. Its advisory expertise extends to both debt and equity transactions. Within debt transactions, the firm has been instrumental in providing guidance to issuers on various bonds and notes issues, including notable involvement in mortgage-backed securitisation.
Within the realm of corporate and M&A, the firm has collaborated with both acquirers and sellers, facilitating acquisitions across a diverse range of industries. This list of sectors includes banking, healthcare, and pharmaceuticals.
In financial services regulatory it provided regulatory advice and services on payment services and products and various AML, banking and corporate matters.
In project development it advised mostly project developers on projects, PPPs and EPC-contracts in various industries, most notably in social infrastructure and energy.
In restructuring and insolvency, the firm advised mostly debtors and creditors on financial restructuring, company restructuring, Chapter 11 and other insolvency matters.
Deal highlights: 33rd edition (2023/2024)
2.1GW Codling Wind Park project
BBIRD II $745 million aircraft asset-backed notes offering
Causeway Consortium €718 million acquisition of Applegreen
DIT Grangegorman PPP project
Endo Group $3.3 billion refinancing
Icon $1.4 billion acquisition financing
Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners $580 million acquisition financing
Virgin Media Ireland €1 billion refinancing
Client Feedback: 33rd edition (2023/2024)
Asset finance
"Proactive. Good at problem-solving. Ability to deal with complex Irish legal issues."
"The asset finance team has had a fantastic reputation for many years. They have a deep, experienced bench of lawyers who are involved in many of the novel transactions in the aviation space."
"Very strong team of partners and good quality associates. Very pragmatic approach, organised and diligent and can be relied upon to get the deal done against tight deadlines. "
Banking and finance
"They are very well informed and networked from an industry perspective and are generous with their time and expertise when it comes to value-adds."
"Superb competition law knowledge. Excellent support on loan sale negotiation, support to the deal team and massive commitment to completion."
"ALG are responsive and knowledgeable; they always work to deliver a good result for the client."
"Knowledgeable and measured."
Capital markets
"A&L Goodbody is extremely knowledgeable and responsive. The counsel in their firm have had extensive experience in all aspects of corporate law and capital markets and so they are able to provide excellent guidance in a timely manner."
"Their capital markets team are very experienced, have a thorough knowledge of the securitisation market and provide us with excellent advice. They are also very responsive to our needs and usually available at short notice."
Financial services regulatory
"Responsive and knowledgeable. Practical to deal with."
"Deep knowledge of local market and associated regulatory expectations."
"The standard of the support and advice provided by A&L throughout the entire engagement was exactly what was needed, from preparing for meetings with the regulator through to assisting us in responding to queries as they arose over the course of the inspection."
"Confidence in work product and in advice. Thorough and pragmatic. Supportive."
"Good technically."
Investment funds
"Very strong ETF experience with a strong commercial approach and timely service. Good industry contacts and knowledge."
"Quality work."
"Very consistent on higher levels (low personal turnover ratio). They try to (and do) understand our business and our individual needs."
M&A
"A&L Goodbody was excellent at providing timely, sound, practical and actionable advice on Irish takeover rules, corporate law and extremely complex tax issues."
"Always provided timely feedback on deadlines and delivery of work product. Very commercial in the discussions on progressing and drafting legal documents. Always made themselves available and very responsive to our questions."
"Excellent customer service, attention to detail, legal drafting, legal advice, tax advice. Good value for money."
"First-class advice, very responsive and actively seek positive solutions."
"Incredibly proactive. Very focused on the motivations of various parties to our deal and able to advise on optimal extent and nature of compromises to make in order to reach desired endpoint."
"ALG understood the Irish market extremely well and gave prompt, solid, practical, and actionable advice and support for the M&A transaction as well as provided practical tax advice, including multiple novel tax theories, for some extremely complex multijurisdictional tax matters. They were always responsive, collaborative and professional."
"They are one of the two leading M&A firms in Ireland (the other being Arthur Cox). The firm has a deep bench and are very responsive and commercial."
PPP/PFI
"Very professional engagement at all levels of the business."
Project finance
"Comprehensive support of lenders. Deep knowledge of market practices and local specificities. Broad panel of skills."
Project finance
"The firm has made a significant effort to really understand our needs, the bank's template contract and to provide excellent advice on intercreditor matters as well as in-depth advice in both the renewable and telecoms sector."
Restructuring
"Prompt and clear legal advice. Demonstrated commercial understanding of the transaction and complex stakeholder dynamics. Helped to successfully deliver an exit from the transaction."
"A&L has a depth of experience. They are well equipped to answer questions we had as well as providing guidance and insights into various considerations that the team was not aware of."
Michael Barr
"Long-term relationship. Understands our business. Reliable. Responsive. Accessible. Knows the industry."
Patrick Brandt
"Responsive and pragmatic."
"Excellent knowledge of local regulatory expectations coupled with practical advice tailored to our business needs."
Neal Breslin
"Large amount of debt capital markets experience. Very proactive and responsive."
Eoghan Browne
"Knowledgeable, calm and confident, responsible to requests and thorough."
Stephen Carson
"Very experienced. Warm personality. Good leader. Supports team well. Responsive."
Alan Casey
"Alan is very knowledgeable and responsive. He has taken the time to understand our business and risk tolerance and provides helpful advice."
"Alan is highly accessible, prompt and gives solid, practical advice on complex M&A topics. He was always calm under fire and results-orientated."
"Alan was very knowledgeable and always responsive. He was patient in explaining Irish takeover rules, some of which were fairly complex, and great at coming up with practical, actionable solutions."
Dario Dagostino
"Dario is exceptionally personable and a very strong, practical and business-minded lawyer."
Sheena Doggett
"Excellent advice, experience level, problem-solving."
Laura Kennedy
"Excellent all-round performer. Provided excellent advice, shows great patience and seeks innovative and positive solutions."
"Incredibly responsive. Great at providing summary notes that avoid excessive legal language. Great attention to detail and potential implications of legal documents."
Ronan Lyons
"Very communicative and provided clear explanations on challenges arising in documentation."
Emma Martin
"Flexible approach and good relationship management, very knowledgeable and supportive."
David McElroy
"In charge of the documentation of the transaction. Good at listening to the lenders, always available, reactive and keen to keep the works going."
"Close care of client's needs. Depth of knowledge of the Irish energy sector. Early identification of points of attention."
Ross Moore
"Very engaging manner, solution-focused, deep expertise."
Seamus O’Croinin
"Very supportive and takes time to explain issues. Always available."
Marie O'Brien
"Proactive. Highly knowledgeable. Excellent problem solver."
"I have known Marie for 15+ years and she is a fantastic lawyer, capable of handling a broad range of transactions in the aviation space, including M&A, JVs, ABS, aircraft leasing and aircraft financing."
"Excellent client service, always actively seeking feedback on the wider team's performance. Very knowledgeable, with broad market experience that benefits the client."
Brian O'Malley
"Brian did a great job helping us navigate the Irish law scheme of arrangement that was used to implement the restructuring. He interfaced well with the legal team who held the pen on English law aspects."
Kerill O'Shaughnessy
"Good knowledge and pleasant to work with."
Jack Sheehy
"Competent, knowledgeable and very client-focused."
Mark Ward
“An excellent senior statesman, with first-rate insight and a very commercial approach.”
