Staying active

Ronan McLoughlin and Lisa Broderick report on DACB Dublin’s recent growth, with a busy last year and new hires, as well as the opportunities and issues expected for Irish law firms in the future

DACB Dublin is part of DAC Beachcroft LLP, an international law firm with over 2,800 professionals and a legal network advising across the United Kingdom, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and North America.

The firm’s Dublin team is DACB’s biggest office outside of the UK, and it is home to 11 partners leading a team of over 95 lawyers and professional support staff, providing clients with a full-service offering.

For this feature, Ronan McLoughlin, partner and location head, and Lisa Broderick, partner and practice head, of DACB’s Dublin office talk to us about the firm’s work over the past year, the anticipated impact of AI, and the issues facing legal businesses today.

How has trading been over the past year?

DACB Dublin has had significant growth in recent years. We’ve become one of the Republic of Ireland’s 20 largest legal offices.

The past 12 months have been another strong year for us, and activity levels were high across all of our teams.

‘Our Dublin team prides itself on providing clients with the full benefits of the advice and representation of a local, Irish law firm of experienced Irish lawyers who have full access to the wider infrastructure and support of a major international law firm.’ Ronan McLoughlin and Lisa Broderick, DACB Dublin

In particular our professional indemnity and commercial litigation teams have been hugely busy with multi-party litigations, arbitrations and mediations. Our cyber and data team also continues to attract new work and clients, and we have had a number of new colleagues join our regulatory team to assist us in managing an ever-increasing workload of disciplinary hearings and High Court applications.

Our Dublin team prides itself on providing clients with the full benefits of the advice and representation of a local, Irish law firm of experienced Irish lawyers who have full access to the wider infrastructure and support of a major international law firm. This, along with our sector-based approach, really is key to our continued success. We have a full-service offering but we can can also draw in specialist resources and support our clients’ ambitions both locally and nationally.

What have your firm’s strategic priorities been over the past 12 months?

Growth based on client need is a key pillar of DACB’s strategy. As our clients’ needs continue to change, we are seizing opportunities to adapt and respond to their requirements, and futureproofing our business in the process.

In Dublin we’ve continued to invest in our business for the benefit of our clients and our colleagues, not least with a number of senior hires. Legal director Seamus White joined the injury risk team, senior associates Lisa Kelly and Feena Robinson both joined the specialist insurance team and legal director Sinead Morgan has joined the employment team.

DACB has also experienced growth, particularly through our continued international expansion. Most recently we have opened new offices in Hong Kong and in Peru, which means we now boast 23 standalone DACB offices as well as a presence in more than 35 countries through our close associations, showing our credentials as a truly international firm with ambitious plans on a global platform.

Among these investments, we have also been exploring additional ways to harness the power of AI.

Do you anticipate AI will impact service to clients?

We’re always striving to identify new ideas, encourage new ways of working, and embrace the latest technical innovations which can improve the way in which we deliver value to our clients.

DACB has set up a group to oversee the opportunities and threats that are presented by AI, under oversight from our firm’s board and executive. There are already AI initiatives we have implemented in specific departments and projects, and we’re continuously exploring what more could and should be done to benefit our business, our clients and our people.

What operational issues are legal businesses facing today?

Across the sector the competition for talent remains a challenge. Even though our retention rate is strong, to support a growth strategy there is a constant need for any law firm to demonstrate its offering to future talent.

‘Even though our retention rate is strong, to support a growth strategy there is a constant need for any law firm to demonstrate its offering to future talent.’ Ronan McLoughlin and Lisa Broderick, DACB Dublin

Today’s talent want this to be about more than just the quality of our client base or the interesting work we do for them. Here at DACB we place a large focus on showing our supportive culture. We work hard to create an environment in which our people can find more enjoyment both when they are at work and in life outside work, and in which everyone feels that their voices are heard and they have the same opportunities to help make a difference.

We also continue to reap the rewards of our trailblazing Flex Forward approach, which sets us apart for the flexibility we offer our colleagues to balance their personal and professional commitments more easily.

Official predictions for Ireland’s economy aren’t positive during 2024 and 2025.

What are your thoughts on this?

Economic projections in Ireland are heavily influenced by multinational enterprise projections and don’t necessarily reflect the domestic economy. In general our clients’ outlook is more optimistic than projections would suggest, access to capital is strong and Economic and Social Research Institute figures show that employment is at ‘an all-time high’, all of which suggest the domestic outlook is quite positive. From a corporate perspective we anticipate an above-average year, with a number of significant acquisitions already underway.