About

Upon Eaton Corporation’s $13bn acquisition of Cooper Industries in 2012 and their subsequent change in domicile from the USA to Ireland, a new legal team and company-wide governance office was created. The legal team played a key role in the setup of company functions in a country completely new to the Eaton business. Led by senior vice president and secretary Thomas Moran, the Dublin-based legal function helped set an example for Eaton’s employees and business in Ireland through their diligence and skill. Dealing with a large amount of legal work resulting from the move, regulatory challenges such as the implementation of the Companies Act 2014 and changes in Irish corporate governance practices are the most immediate challenges to the team. Due to the multinational conglomerate’s unique structure the legal team is also responsible for shared responsibility with US law in the areas of corporate governance, securities and other areas. In dealing with this monumental shift in business strategy, there are several ways in which the Dublin team proves its worth, ranging from objective measures, like successfully reducing reliance on outside counsel in Ireland and elsewhere and ensuring compliance with Irish and European law, and other methods including organisational changes. Indeed, the team is in the process of centralising legal support to various Eaton functions, spanning a wide range of areas including supply chain, tax and corporate governance; in doing so enabling consistent legal support mirroring Eaton’s business philosophy and policies. A forward-looking department with a truly international remit, efforts have been made to co-operate with counterparts in North America and elsewhere in creating a centre of excellence for the company. To make this possible, standard terms and conditions were devised, template documents created and guidance notes written alongside knowledge-sharing platforms for the legal team and its clients.