Expertise
We work closely with colleagues in our Corporate M&A Group to provide comprehensive, practical and solutions-oriented advice on all of the legal and tax aspects of corporate transactions across a broad range of industry sectors, many with an international dimension. Our experience spans high profile acquisitions by multinational clients, private equity transactions, venture backed and other fund investments and public deals. We have provided tax advice on some of the most significant M&A transactions in recent years, representing some of the world’s largest corporates, financial institutions and international private equity groups.
Private M&A
In the private M&A space, we advise purchasers, sellers, third party lenders and W&I insurance providers on the various tax issues that arise during M&A transactions, including negotiating the tax aspects of the transaction documentation and advising on the broader tax consequences and tax structuring of the deal. The strength and depth of our tax team provides a unique advantage over other Irish law firms and this, along with our close collaboration with our Corporate M&A Group, means that tax issues are considered and raised early on in the transaction process.
An Irish acquisition often marks the commencement of operations in Ireland for purchasers and we have significant experience advising on and implementing the acquisition of an Irish business by multinational groups with no significant prior presence in Ireland. Our advice spans across different stages of an acquirer’s business life cycle, starting with the acquisition and typically moving on to the putting in place of proper building blocks for a newly established tax presence in Ireland, along with navigating tax issues that arise in running the Irish operations and / or potential post-acquisition restructuring issues.
On the sell side, we advise sellers on the tax-efficient structuring of the sale, including around potential pre-sale restructurings, capital gains tax issues and any employment tax considerations or pitfalls.
We also have extensive experience advising on transaction taxes, in particular, Irish stamp duty and VAT (in the context of asset acquisitions).
Public M&A
In the public company arena, we have advised on some of the largest global transactions. Recent examples include:
- AbbVie’s acquisition of Allergan plc.
- Willis Towers Watson PLC’s (pending) USD 80 billion all-stock combination with Aon PLC, a combination of two Irish incorporated publicly listed companies.
- Gardner Denver on its business combination with Ingersoll Rand involving a “Reverse Morris Trust” transaction.