Shaun O'Shea

The firm advised on 30 transactions in the first half of the year, which saw a 25 per cent decline in deal volume after a prolonged period of growth.

Beauchamp was followed by Arthur Cox with 29 transactions, Philip Lee with 26 and A&L Goodbody with 20. Eversheds Sutherland and Flynn O’Driscoll were tied on 17.

DLA Piper and Dentons both advised on 12 transactions, while McCann FitzGerald and Wallace Corporate Counsel both advised on 11.

Shaun O’Shea, head of the corporate M&A group at Beauchamps, said: “Beauchamps’ No. 1 ranking has further cemented our market position as a long standing corporate M&A practice, handling significant deal flow. This could not have been achieved without the full dedication of our hard-working and talented team.

“This recognition further solidifies the trust our clients place in us to advise on both Irish and cross-border transactions across the industry. We would like to thank our clients and look forward to working on more deal activity throughout the remainder of the year.”

There were 290 transactions in the Irish M&A market in the first half of 2023, down from 387 in the first half of 2022, though activity “still sits comfortably ahead of pre-pandemic levels”.