Breda practises in both Employment and Commercial Law and is currently the Head of the Employment Law team at Hayes solicitors. She advises both employers and employees on all aspects of the employment relationship and she adopts a commercially pragmatic approach to dispute issues, avoiding litigation for her clients where possible, and using her skills as an accredited commercial mediator. Breda is recognised as one of Ireland’s leading advisers in the area of the Transfer Regulations (TUPE). She has advised many employer organisations on TUPE in the context of outsourcing, service provider changes and mergers.
Her commercial and business work includes advising on a wide range of commercial contracts, public tenders and management of commercial disputes. Breda acts for a broad spectrum of clients from multinational corporations and large public entities to indigenous Irish businesses, charities and private clients.
CEDR Assistant Mediation in London, appointed by agreement - Employment/Contract Dispute (c.Stg.30,000) - successful. Ad hoc mediation appointment by two firms of Irish Solicitors - 3 meetings - employment and contract issues - value 250,000 - 500,000 Euro - successful.
Various representations acting for clients in construction sector.
Dermot has over 10 years experience acting as Mediator or mediator advocate; and has been involved in many disputes (80+) over that time. This is in addition to Dermot's 20 plus years experience acting as a commercial litigator. When acting as mediator Dermot is always conscious of the need to rely upon his core professional skills acquired as a litigator and the need to marry these skills with facilitative tools acquired as a mediator. He has found this an effective recipe to maximising the road to a successful outcome to mediation and commercial compromise.
Dermot is an accredited CEDR mediator since January 2003. He is now Chairman of the Council for the Irish Commercial Mediation Association (ICMA). Dermot is also a former member of the Law Society of Ireland's Arbitration and Mediation Committee, and of the Litigation Committee. Dermot also participated on a 2009 Litigation Task Force established by the Law Society of Ireland to examine the remit of mediation, arbitration and litigation in Ireland. Dermot has been a co-author and sub-committee participant (for the Law Society) on a Report commissioned to look at the existing rules in dispute resolution for Electronic Discovery in the Irish Courts.
Ronan is a CEDR accredited mediator and Partner in Ronan Daly Jermyn’s Litigation and Dispute Resolution Department. He represents clients before the Circuit, High (including the Commercial Court) and Supreme Courts and also regularly represents clients in other forums, including Mediations, Arbitrations, Tribunals and Oral Hearings.
He has acted as Mediator or assistant Mediator in a number of commercial disputes relating to diverse issues such as insurance policies, Landlord and Tenant issues, construction contracts and shareholder disputes. He has also acted as advisor in many commercial mediations including in several Commercial Court matters where eight figure claims were involved.
Ronan has been actively involved in the promotion of mediation from 2006 onwards both through his involvement with CEDR at an early stage of their launch in Ireland as well as through commercialmediators.ie. He has lectured widely in relation to the area of mediation including in the Law Society and at many client events.
Ronan is recognised as leading lawyer in the field of Construction and Planning and Environment in the Legal 500, 2018.
Colm is an Accredited Mediator and a Chartered Accountant. He has spent over thirty years assisting clients overcome problems. He was a partner in a large multi-disciplinary practice in both audit and corporate finance.
His broad experience has seen him involved in commercial mediation of all types. Colm has a particular expertise in shareholder disputes and partnership disputes.
He has extensive knowledge of a broad range of industries and is passionate that mediation is the best solution for parties involved in a dispute as it facilitates their involvement in devising a solution.
Killian is an experienced solicitor who represents clients in the commercial, insurance, retail and aviation sectors. He specialises in the resolution of commercial disputes and has significant experience in commercial litigation and property related cases.
Killian regularly represents clients at all Court levels and before employment tribunals & forums. He frequently advises insurers and self-insured commercial organisations with regard to litigation and employment matters.
He has extensive experience in providing advice on insurance coverage and pre-litigation exposures. Killian is a CEDR Accredited Mediator and has an active interest in mediation as an alternative to litigation.
Austin is a CEDR accredited mediator (2004), a Mediators Institute of Ireland Practitioner Member (2009), a member of the International Mediators Institute (IMI) and has completed his study of advanced mediation with MATA (2008). He is also an accredited Conflict Management Coach (2010) and a Master Trainer in Conflict Competence (2013). Austin has been a member of the CEDR International Panel since 2010 and is the only Irish Mediator being referred work in the UK.
Since 2008 Austin has mediated a significant number (by Irish standards) of commercial disputes in Ireland and the UK across a wide range of sectors as well as handling workplace and community mediations and coaching clients through difficult conflict situations.
Austin has been on the Council of the Irish Commercial Mediation Association (ICMA) since 2007 and was Chairman for four years up to 2014. He also regularly lectures in Irish Universities, Professional Bodies and Business Colleges on mediation, negotiation and conflict management.
BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUNDHis background is accounting and business and he ran his own successful accountancy practice for 20 years until 2008. While in professional practice his areas of expertise included forensic accounting, insolvency, mergers & acquisitions, corporate finance. He worked extensively advising on legal business agreements including share sales, partnerships, co-ownership, business sales, Directors employment contracts and option agreements.
He has been Chairman of a number of companies including motor, property, hospitality, retail, distribution and manufacturing sectors. He has been adviser to many family businesses dealing with challenging issues involving business transition, succession planning and tax planning.
He has been coach and mentor to a number of business owners working in the areas of goal setting, building business vision and strategic planning.
MEDIATION WORKAustin has had excellent success in his mediation work with over 80% of cases settled. He offers disputing parties an opportunity to step away from the adversarial legal approach and benefit from his personal brand of commerciality, common sense, humanity and relentless positivity. He has mediated across a wide range of sectors and case types including:-
Austin has also mediated a number of workplace and separating couples/divorce cases. These cases require a deeper understanding and capacity to work with interpersonal conflict and often highly irrational behavior. As a Certified Conflict Management Coach (Cinnie Noble) and a Master Trainer in Conflict Dynamic Profile (Eckerd College, Florida), Austin has become highly competent in working with disputants to help them build self-awareness with view to achieving the best possible outcomes in mediation.
MEDIATION STYLEAustin is predominantly a facilitative mediator with a keen eye for a deal. His commercial background, business acumen and high level of numeracy skills helps him sit comfortably in commercial cases involving high levels of monetary calculations, formulae and accounting standards and principles.
Paradoxically (some might say) his personality and people skills are his big strength. He has the capacity to build trust from early on with parties as well as recognize and work with the emotional blockages that often get in the way of settling cases.
Preparation is central to his work. Pre-mediation meetings and site meetings are a regular feature. He works with Parties and their representatives to design a mediation process that they buy into. As a mediator he believes his job is to bring creativity to the dispute resolution process. He works hard on reality testing, risk analysis, option generation key and widening the cake where possible.
Michael is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and Managing Director of Madigan Mediation & Consultancy Services Ltd. He is a CEDR accredited Mediator and a Honorary Treasurer of the Mediators Institute of Ireland and a Council member of the Irish Commercial Mediation Association.
Michael has 29 years banking experience having held senior risk and lending positions with Ulster Bank and First Active. Michael's mediation experience primarily relates to commercial disputes in Ireland and the UK covering contract, shareholder and partnership disputes. Michael has also successfully assisted a number of his clients in their negotiations with financial institutions.
