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Solicitor to lead British Irish Chamber of Commerce

Solicitor Jeanne Kelly, founding partner at Browne Jacobson Ireland, has been elected president of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce at its AGM (26 September).

Kelly previously served as the chamber’s vice-president from 2022/23 and is the outgoing chair of the chamber’s ICT committee.

Windsor framework

At Tuesday's AGM Jeanne Kelly said: “I am truly honoured to be elected President of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce, at a time of great change and progress in British – Irish trade and relations. In a post-Brexit and Windsor Framework era, this is now the moment to grasp the vast opportunities presented for collaboration and trade across these Islands.

“It is a volume of trade now exceeding €100 billion per annum primed with further opportunities in areas such as technology, energy, sustainability, research, and financial services”.

That trade also directly supports over 600,000 jobs.

She added: “I want to build on my predecessor Maree Gallagher’s legacy to ensure the chamber puts the nuts and bolts of trade at the forefront of its agenda, that means more regional engagements, greater networking opportunities and a laser sharp focus on addressing any potential trade barriers North – South, East – West across these islands.”

Focus on trade

Jeanne plans to keep the focus on trade alongside newly elected vice-president Marie Doyle, partner at Deloitte in the North.

BICC was founded in 2011 ahead of the historic visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Ireland. Members of the bilateral chamber include Barclays, Deloitte, KPMG, The Open University, Trinity College Dublin, and Zurich, among others.

Jeanne Kelly has over 25 years’ experience in leading a commercial tech-law practice. She has advised private and public sector clients on technology, intellectual property and data privacy law, and has also led data-protection compliance programmes for some of Ireland’s leading corporates, as well as for multinationals with Irish operations.

She also advises on large outsourcing projects, supply arrangements and intellectual asset management.

“The return of the chamber’s annual conference on 12 October will illuminate the potential of this critical trading relationship,” Jeanne Kelly said.