Bird & Bird has appointed Michael Finn as its new head of country in Ireland.

Michael took up the role as of the 1 May from partners Roger Bickerstaff and Sally Shorthose who initially led the Ireland office.

Finn joined the firm as a partner in 2023 following the summer 2022 opening of Bird & Bird’s Irish office.

Since then, he has been handling client relationships on IP litigation, commercial disputes, and technology and life sciences matters.

With a growing team of five partners and over 30 people in the Ireland office, a key part of his new role will be to continue to bolster the firm’s strong offering in Ireland in the areas of data protection, intellectual property, corporate, life sciences and technology, and communications, and more, with further recruitment.

Transformation

Bird & Bird Chief Executive Christian Bartsch said: “It’s been an exciting few years for our Irish team, and I’ve no doubt that Michael will continue that trajectory as we continue to guide organisations through a world being shaped by technology, innovation and regulation, and driving the transformation of legal-services delivery.”

Michael Finn added: “Ireland is the location of choice for many multinational companies as they seek access to the EU market through a business-friendly, English-speaking, common-law jurisdiction, and I am confident that our unique offering in the market will continue to help them make the most of that opportunity.”