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Specialist Guide to the

Global Leaders in Media Law Practice

IRELAND

Ireland is at risk of becoming the defamation capital of the world as reform complexities hinder legislative progress.

With neighbouring fears in Scotland of libel tourism, Ireland is not alone in its calls for reform as the UK sweeps ahead with amendments that made it more difficult for plaintiffs to sue for libel.

Change to the UK’s Defamation Act in April 2013 also placed greater burden on proving serious harm or financial loss in cases of corporate disputes. Meanwhile, in Ireland the case of Leech vs Independent Newspapers (2014), a landmark ruling, raised expectations of high damages.

Karyn Harty at McCann FitzGerald explained “Plaintiffs have much higher expectations now.

I think Leech vs Independent Newspapers has certainly contributed to it.”

Ms Harty continued: “The people who would have traditionally sued in London are coming to Ireland. We are seeing a real lift in this area.”

Ireland’s economic growth, which is the fastest in the Eurozone, has helped restore advertiser

confidence and prompted media market expansion. The government expects continued growth at a rate of 6 per cent this year, as announced by finance minister Michael Noonan.

Fiona Barry at William Fry highlighted the “end of recession and beginning of recovery”. She added: “We are beginning to see the economy turn around again in terms of advertising and we are seeing print advertising coming back quite strongly.”

2015 has been a good year for the film industry too after the introduction to tax credit of 32 per cent on film production costs.

As explained by Jonathan Kelly at Philip Lee, “There is an element of competition for which country has the best tax incentive and ours has been changed from an investor tax break to a tax credit more like in the UK.”

WILLIAM FRY

TIER 1

Arthur Cox has an established media practice with cross-border capability. Working from its Belfast and London offices, the firm advises on music, film, television and advertising. Under the leadership of Colin Kavanagh the team advised Savage Productions on the financing and production of various film and television projects. The team also assisted RTÉ Networks with regulatory aspects of third party broadcasting.

McCann FitzGerald’s internal collaborative approach creates broad sector and service focus. The firm’s specialisation in media defence, commercial litigation, privacy and internet liability is driven by department head Karyn Harty. The team works on numerous defamation actions on behalf of long-standing clients Times Newspapers Ltd, Trinity Mirror and the Rehab Group.

William Fry has a “strong reputation in the area of defamation”. Clients highlight the firm as one of Ireland’s leading media law practices. Head of defamation and privacy Fiona Barry is described by clients as “thoughtful, responsive and provides pragmatic advice”. Head of media Ken Casey advises on a range of issues including entertainment, social media and data protection. The firm acts for clients including UTV, BBC, Daily Mail Group and Sky.

TIER 2

A&L Goodbody’s media team operates under the management of the firm’s IP and technology division. Areas of specialisation include broadcast, entertainment, publishing and online media. Lawyers advise on regulation, content licensing and copyright disputes.

Lawyers at Matheson have in-depth experience advising on libel, contempt of court, freedom of expression and privacy laws. With a dedicated entertainment and media group, the firm is widely involved in contractual and financing arrangements for feature films and television programming. Head of division Ruth Hunter also advises on sector-related equity and tax-based arrangements.

With a dedicated sports law division, Mason Hayes & Curran lawyers regularly advise broadcasters, sponsors, sports-governing bodies, investors and athletes. Related focus areas include reputation management, personality and image rights along with dispute resolution. Working from a separate TMT division, media lawyers work with leading social media and search organisations on matters ranging from first round funding and strategic outsourcing partnerships to intellectual property management.

The media and entertainment division at Philip Lee Solicitors specialises in film and television. Lawyers assist with feature films, animation series and television drama produced in Ireland. The team also advises on Ireland’s tax incentive for film and online distributed productions. Led by Jonathan Kelly, the practice is recognised among peers for its high visibility in sector-related cases.

Primarily a defence practice, Simon McAleese Solicitors is among the country’s leading libel specialists. The media team acts for newspapers, magazine and book publishers, radio stations and independent television production companies. The firm is also known for its work in the area of data protection, copyright and reputation management.

TIER 3

Rachel Shanley manages the media division at Eugene F. Collins, which is known for its focus on traditional media content providers such as radio and television broadcasters. The team also provides pre-publication advice and litigates on behalf of clients in cases of defamation and privacy.

Johnsons Solicitors is gaining recognition among peers, who highlight the firm for its increased visibility in media cases. Under the management of Paul Tweed, the team achieved record damages for plaintiff clients while representing national newspapers and publishers. The firm also works with clients from the music, sports and entertainment industries.

LK Shields lawyers have extensive experience advising on corporate transactions. The firm acted for Communicorp Group Limited, the largest radio operator in Ireland, in its acquisitions of foreign radio stations. In a separate case lawyers advised Alpha Newspaper Group with its acquisition of various newspapers. Other focus areas include film financing and production, music rights and defamation.

Ronan Daly Jermyn’s areas of expertise include defamation, privacy and contempt of law. Lawyers acts for print, broadcast and digital media clients on media mergers, advertising, copyright and regulation. The firm advises radio and digital entities within the UTV Group and several regional newspaper titles.

TIER 4

Beauchamps Solicitors specialises in advertising, digital media and sponsorship. The team provides advice on content, online marketing, copyright protection as well as clearance advice on advertising copy. The practice is known for transactional work, sports law and product law.

The media division at DFMG Solicitors works within the firm’s intellectual property department, focussing on film finance, privacy and sponsorship and advertising agreements. Lawyers also advise on data protection and copyright.

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Ranking and editorials

TIER 1

Arthur Cox

McCann FitzGerald

William Fry

TIER 2

A&L Goodbody

Matheson

Mason Hayes & Curran

Philip Lee

Simon McAleese

TIER 3

ByrneWallace

Eugene F. Collins

Johnsons

LK Shields

Ronan Daly Jermyn

TIER 4

Beauchamps

Dillon Eustace

DFMG Solicitors

Eversheds

Gleeson McGrath Baldwin

RANKING AND EDITORIALS