A&L Goodbody Northern Ireland LLP

The commercial and technology team at A&L Goodbody Northern Ireland LLP is well regarded for acting on contentious IP matters for large technology companies. The all-Ireland firm is often instructed by London firms on complex matters, such as jurisdictional challenges on regarding trademark infringements. Ciaran O’Shiel leads on contentious cases while Mark Thompson leads on the non-contentious work. O’Shiel has strong experience in acting on complex patent litigations and trademark infringements at the High Court. Thompson is an expert on advising on research and collaboration agreements in various sectors. Senior associate Ronan Marlow provides support on a great deal of O’Shiel’s matters, including many High Court proceedings involving trademark infringements. Associate Caroline Price is another individual to note.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

‘This is a very strong team in a niche area in Northern Ireland, which has limited expertise in IP. The firm is one of the few who can deal with complete patent and trademark disputes.’
'Ronan Marlow is one of a limited number of IP specialist solicitors in Belfast. His technical knowledge and experience are very highly regarded, and he provides expertise which many other firms simply cannot provide.’
‘One of the leading IP practices in Northern Ireland with great strength and depth.’
‘Ciarán O’Shiel is hungry and driven to push the team forward, Ronan Marlow is highly capable.’‘The intellectual property team in A&L is, in my view, the “go to” team in Northern Ireland for IP disputes. They are true specialists in the area. In an often complex area of law, they are a safe pair of hands.’
‘Ciaran O'Shiel and Ronan Marlow deserve special mention. Their knowledge in the area is unparalleled. They are a real force to be reckoned with – they immediately get to the heart of cases and handle them with ease. Their client care is first-rate.’
‘The A&L team was able to grasp a niche legal case and work through the relevant detail highlighting risks and defining a clear strategy. They were able to collaborate with the top English legal practice in this field and secure the jurisdiction arguments to hear the case in Northern Ireland.’
‘Ronan Marlow has a clear understanding of complex IP law and can articulate the correct strategy to achieve the desired outcome when the law is ambiguous, or precedent is lacking. He gives clear feedback on action points and roadmap so that decisions can be made to protect IP.’

Key clients

Titanic Distillers Limited & Danny Boy Label LLP
Leading Provider of Cosmetics
Leading Sporting Organisation
National Bioscience Research Body
Screwfix Direct Limited
News Group
Crash Services Limited & Granite Financial Limited
Granite Financial Limited
Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS)
Devenish Nutrition Limited

Work highlights

Acted for Screwfix Direct Limited in defending high court proceedings brought against it in relation to alleged claims of passing off and trademark infringement.
Acted for News Group Newspapers and successfully defended proceedings brought against it in the High Court of Northern Ireland by seven partners at the Belfast law firms KRW Law LLP and Phoenix Law LLP.
Instructed by Crash Services Limited & Granite Financial Limited to initiate trademark infringement and passing off proceedings in the High Court of Northern Ireland against an English-based company.