With 15 years’ experience, Mr Gardiner is a highly-regarded advisor in the aviation leasing and finance sector in Ireland.

His practice spans corporate structuring and the establishment of aviation-related corporate platforms in Ireland, to advising on aircraft financing, trading, and leasing transactions and on aviation regulatory matters in Ireland.

His experience extends to providing Irish legal advice to airlines, lessors, aircraft financiers, owner trustees and corporate service providers located worldwide on transactions involving Ireland.

A licenced private pilot with a hugely technical knowledge of aircraft, Mr Gardiner will work closely with the Dublin finance practice led by Stephen McLoughlin and in conjunction with Mary O’Neill to further develop the firm’s Irish asset finance practice as well as the Maples Group’s wider global asset finance team.

Peter Stapleton, Ireland managing partner, said: “Stephen’s aviation expertise is well-recognised in the sector both in Ireland and internationally and we are delighted to welcome him to our finance practice in Ireland.

“He joins our asset finance team at a time of growth including recent internal promotions, recognition and accolades for our team members and awards for client deals.”

He added: “The Maples Group is unique compared to domestic law firms by combining the services offered by a leading international law firm with a full-scale financial services business.

“This integrated service model offers our clients a wider range of expertise and with additional resources and our latest innovations in technology, we expect to advise on an even greater number of significant deals in the aviation sector in 2025.”

Mr McLoughlin, head of finance in Ireland, said: “To meet growing client demand for asset finance, banking and structured finance advice, we continue to expand our European finance practice with key hires in the region.

“In addition to Stephen’s arrival, we recently welcomed Yann Hilpert to our Luxembourg finance practice.

“We are confident that Stephen’s considerable experience will complement our Irish and global finance team in meeting client needs.”

Mr Gardiner added: “Joining an international firm with a presence and on-the-ground experience in multiple jurisdictions made the Maples Group very attractive to me.

“The group’s extensive international offering and reputation for excellence were key factors in my decision to join.

“I am excited to collaborate with my colleagues in Ireland and across our global network to deliver exceptional service to our clients.”

The Dublin firm said it has appointed a number of senior lawyers at partner, of counsel and associate level over the last 12 months, including to its growing finance team.