1 November 2023

McCann FitzGerald LLP appoints Mark White as Chair and announces seven new Of Counsel promotions across the firm

Pictured from left to right: Newly appointed Chair, Mark White, Partner, Catherine Deane, and Stephen Holst, Managing Partner

Mark White, Partner and Head of the firm’s Investment Management Group, succeeds Catherine Deane as Chair following her four-year term in the role, which was established in 2019 to further bolster governance and leadership structures in the business. Mark commences the role of Chair today, 1 November, and will serve a four-year term.

McCann FitzGerald LLP also announced the promotion of seven new Of Counsel appointments with immediate effect. Those promoted include Clare Carroll, Joyce Cunningham, Martina Firbank, Cormac Mac Diarmada, Áine Murphy, Stephen Ryan and Gerard Sadlier. Of Counsel positions are awarded within the firm to Senior Associates who demonstrate exceptional technical expertise and have an outstanding track record of delivering excellence in service for clients.

Pictured from left to right: Martina Firbank; Clare Carroll; Gerard Sadlier; Joyce Cunningham; Mark White; Áine Murphy; Cormac Mac Diarmada and Stephen Ryan, pictured with Stephen Holst, Managing Partner

Commenting on the appointments, Stephen Holst, Managing Partner, McCann FitzGerald LLP, said: “Strong leadership and fresh perspectives are central to how we evolve our practice to meet the changing needs of our clients. I’m delighted to congratulate my colleagues on their promotions in recognition of their exceptional commitment, expertise and dedication to our firm’s growth.

On behalf of the firm, I would also like to thank Catherine Deane for the immense contribution she made in the role of Chair over the past four years, while also retaining unwavering commitment to her client work. Succeeding Catherine, Mark White’s experience, wisdom and vision will greatly contribute to the strength of our leadership. I look forward to working closely with Mark and our wider leadership team to continue to grow our business, seek new opportunities and meet challenges head-on.”

Mark White

Mark, a graduate of UCD, joined McCann FitzGerald in 1994 and is a Partner and Head of the firm’s Investment Management Group. He advises a wide variety of clients who are engaged in the promotion and management of all types of investment funds, including UCITS funds, money market funds, ETFs, hedge funds, real estate funds, managed accounts platforms, infrastructure/real assets and private equity funds. Mark is a member of the Irish Funds AIF Innovation Working Group and is an Officer of the International Bar Association’s Asset Management and Investment Funds Committee.

Clare Carroll

Clare regularly advises corporations and individual directors and officers in respect of regulatory and enforcement matters, including statutory investigations and inquiries. She also advises public bodies on administrative and regulatory law issues, including on the exercise of statutory powers and performance of statutory obligations. She has extensive experience in court proceedings at all jurisdictional levels and in alternative dispute resolution.

Joyce Cunningham

Joyce has an in-depth knowledge of project finance, PPPs and asset finance. She has been engaged in infrastructure projects across a number of sectors including energy, housing and education. Joyce is able to draw on her experience to provide advice to clients on the structuring, negotiation and documentation of complex financing transactions and achieve the desired commercial outcome.

Martina Firbank

Martina has extensive experience, both transactional and advisory, in all aspects of real estate practice and regulation including single and multi-asset acquisitions and disposals, corporate mergers and acquisitions, funding, development, renewable energy projects, leases and estate management (both commercial and residential), purpose-built student accommodation, ESG, insolvency and disputes.

Cormac Mac Diarmada

Cormac practises in the firm’s Disputes, Administrative and Public Law and International Disputes divisions, advising on all aspects of administrative and public law, having advised numerous public bodies as well as Government departments. Cormac is also an experienced litigator with wide experience across regulatory, administrative and commercial disputes.

Áine Murphy

Áine qualified with McCann FitzGerald in 2012 and has extensive experience in advising on all aspects of contentious and non-contentious insolvency and restructuring, including receiverships, examinerships, liquidations and consensual arrangements. Her expertise also includes advising banks, financial institutions and loan acquirers on all aspects of enforcement and debt recovery.

Stephen Ryan

Stephen practises in the firm’s Antitrust and Competition Group having joined the firm this year, advising on all aspects of EU and Irish competition law and general matters of EU law. Prior to joining the firm, Stephen worked as a senior legal advisor at the Hong Kong Competition Commission for eight years and also spent six years in private practice with leading UK and US firms in London, Brussels and Hong Kong.

Gerard Sadlier

Gerard advises clients across a range of contentious matters, including cross-border commercial disputes, regulatory matters and professional indemnity matters. Gerard has significant experience in high-end commercial disputes and in public law matters, where he has been involved in significant commercial disputes, involving litigation in more than one jurisdiction and in significant professional negligence litigation, acting both for plaintiffs and defendants.