Lewis Silkin LLP launches first Irish office in Dublin

International law firm Lewis Silkin LLP has today announced its expansion into Ireland with the establishment of a new office in Dublin.

The new office launches with the hire of Irish employment law specialists Siobhra Rush, who joins the commercial firm as partner, and Linda Hynes, who joins as managing associate.

They will be supported by London-based colleagues Sean Dempsey, Catherine Hayes and David Hopper in order to provide Irish and international employment law services and support clients with business immigration needs in addition to workplace data protection compliance.

Michael Burd, chair and employment law partner at Lewis Silkin, said: “Launching in Dublin capitalises on a real opportunity for Lewis Silkin to not only further build on the existing scale and breadth of our employment practice, but also to expand our role within Ius Laboris.”

Mr Burd added: “We look forward to contributing to and participating in the local business community in Dublin, while continuing to develop the world’s leading global HR law offering through both Ius Laboris and our wider network of offices in the UK and Hong Kong.”

James Davies, divisional managing partner of Lewis Silkin’s employment, immigration and reward division, added: “Ireland has become an important jurisdiction for our clients across many different sectors in the wake of Brexit - in particular with regard to employment and data privacy. We are therefore pleased to be able to offer our clients Irish employment advice going forward.”

Ian Jeffery, chief executive of the firm, said the opening of the Dublin office represented “a significant step in our evolution as a firm”.

He added: “The new Dublin office is a natural and complementary addition to our existing offering, and further enhances our ability to deliver for clients with operations in Ireland, the wider EU and globally. Going forward, we will continue to review avenues for expansion in Ireland in line with evolving client requirements.”

Martin Shanahan, CEO of IDA Ireland, welcomed the announcement as “another reference point for IDA, enabling us to market Ireland’s international legal services sector to other similar firms”.

He added: “The company’s rationale for locating in Ireland centres around the strong talent pool this country has on offer. It is the number one factor which companies cite when they make investment decisions in favour of Ireland.”