Sean Ryan

Practice Areas

Sean is a Partner in our Corporate Department and is head of the Firm’s EU & Competition Law Group.

Sean is a highly experienced lawyer with over 22 years’ experience advising on EU law, EU and Irish Competition Law and merger control. He is head of the Firm’s EU & Competition Law Group which is consistently ranked in legal directories, and was the first Irish lawyer to be appointed on behalf of the Irish Competition Authority (now the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission) to act as ‘Monitoring Trustee’ (in connection with the sale of FM104) which included monitoring the sale process from competition law compliance perspective and issuing detailed compliance reports to the Authority.

Sean has been involved in and/or advised on a large proportion of the more significant merger control and/or competition investigations in Ireland over many years, and is listed in the (Eighth Edition) of ‘The Best Lawyers in Ireland’ for Competition Law. He advises on all aspects of EU and Irish competition / antitrust law, including Irish and EU merger control, competition law aspects of commercial agreements, state aid, joint ventures, pricing, refusal to supply, abuse of dominance, anti-competitive agreements, competition litigation, leniency applications, client training and compliance programs, and investigations and dawn raids.

Experience

Sean's recent experience includes:

- TIIC Advisor SAS and 3i Group plc: Advising on all merger control aspects in respect of two notifiable transactions to the European Commission relating to the acquisition of an interest in a concession for the operation and maintenance of two of Ireland’s primary toll roads – the M8 Rathcormac/Fermoy Bypass and the M7 Limerick Southern Ring Road.

- Goodbody Stockbrokers: Advising on all aspects of the merger control process relating to AIB Group PLC’s acquisition of Goodbody Stockbrokers (with assets of Eur 8bn).

- Synch Payments: Advising on all competition law and merger control aspects of establishing a joint venture in the mobile payments sector involving Allied Irish Banks PLC, Bank of Ireland, KBC Bank Ireland PLC and Permanent TSB PLC.

- Tetrarch Group Limited: Advising on all aspects of the merger control process relating to Tetrarch’s acquisition of: Citywest Hotel; Powerscourt Hotel Resort and Spa; Kilashee Hotel and Spa; and Mount Juliet Estate and Golf Club.

- NTMA: Advising in relation to all aspects of the merger control process relating to the proposed establishment of a commercial joint venture between the NTMA (in its capacity as controller and manager of the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund) and Cork County Council.

- Confidential Client: making submissions on behalf of a client to the European Commission on the proposed new Vertical Block Exemption Regulation.

- Rilta Group: Advising in relation to the merger control aspects of Rilta’s Groups’s acquisition by Enva Exponent Private Equity LLP. Rilta Group provides a range of hazardous and non-hazardous waste services in Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and also operates facilities licenced by the Environmental Protection Agency.

- Confidential Client: Advising in respect of on an abuse of dominance case, including the issuing of proceedings.

- Beauparc: Advising on all aspects of its joint notification to the European Commission regarding the acquisition of indirect joint control of Beauparc Utilities Holdings Limited by global asset manager, Blackstone Group.

- Confidential Client: advising on follow-on actions for damages arising from the European Commission’s decision to fine certain truck manufacturers Eur 2.9bn for participating in a cartel.

- A leading retailer: Advising on all aspects of the merger control process relating to the acquisition, through its wholly owned subsidiary Superquinn Limited, of sole control of Donnybrook Fair Limited and its subsidiaries.

- Confidential Client: advising clients on a CCPC investigation within the healthcare sector, including undertakings proposed to the CCPC.

- Confidential Client: Advising on whether the practice of the Revenue Commissioners and HM Revenue & Customs in relation to Article 14A of the Double Taxation Treaty between Ireland and the UK, resulted in State Aid being granted to Irish insurance companies.

- Confidential Client: advising a multinational client on it grounds of complaint against a competitor refusing access to certain online platforms.

- Star Capital Partnership LLP: Advising a private equity fund manager, on all aspects of the merger control process relating to its acquisition of ASL Aviation Holdings Designated Activity Company, which consists of 8 airlines, active in a number of jurisdictions in the provision of air passenger and cargo services.

- Confidential Client: Advising on State Aid elements relating to the €350 million contract for the 600,000 tonne incinerator at Poolbeg, Dublin.

- Confidential Client: Advising in relation to an EU merger notification to the European Commission. Advising in particular in relation to: (i) Irish merger control analysis; (ii) merger control analysis across multiple jurisdictions ; (iii) full function joint ventures; and (iv) drafting a Short Form Notification to the European Commission.

- Blue Insurance: Advising on all aspects of the merger control process in relation to Zurich Group’s acquisition of Blue Insurance through its wholly owned indirect subsidiary Cover-More Australia Pty Ltd including drafting a merger notification to the CCPC.