ByrneWallace and LK Shields Solicitors - two of the country's biggest law firms - have agreed to merge to create Byrne Wallace Shields.
The deal is one of the largest involving two Irish law firms and will create a firm with over 430 employees, including 220 solicitors.
The merger will take effect from January 1, 2025.
The Managing Partner of the merged firm will be Feargal Brennan, who is now the Managing Partner of ByrneWallace. Richard Curran, Managing Partner of LK Shields, will become Senior Partner in the merged firm.
Byrne Wallace Shields will be based in the current offices of ByrneWallace on Harcourt Street in Dublin city centre.
ByrneWallace LLP employs 311 people and the firm has dedicated teams across all significant areas of Irish law.
It has particular expertise in areas including banking and finance, employment, property, infrastructure construction and energy (ICE), litigation, corporate, M&A, recovery, intellectual property, data orotection, tax, technology, life sciences, ESG, public sector, healthcare and retail.
LK Shields Solicitors LLP employs 123 people amd it has offices in Dublin and Galway.
Its clients include Irish and international businesses, financial institutions and public bodies and it has acted and continues to act in some of the largest and most high-profile corporate transactions and legal cases in Ireland, across a range of sectors¸ and for a wide range of domestic and international businesses.
Feargal Brennan and Richard Curran said the merger would create a larger, better resourced, more dynamic firm to service the needs of existing clients and to target larger mandates from existing and new clients.
"We see this merger as a strong vote of confidence in the Irish economy. Our firms share similar cultures and values and we both enjoy the support of loyal clients, both domestic and international," they said.
"We believe that this merger will enable us to provide enhanced services to those clients in support of their growth ambitions, and to compete for new Irish and international business," they added.
