Gavin heads up our Commercial Litigation and Dispute Resolution and Corporate Restructuring & Insolvency teams. Gavin advises lending institutions, companies, directors, shareholders, creditors, debtors and insolvency practitioners as examiners, liquidators and receivers and operates primarily in the High Court.
Prior to co-founding AMOSS, Gavin was a senior partner and head of the Corporate Restructuring & Insolvency department of one of the 10 largest law firms in Ireland.
Experience
- Advised a bank in defending proceedings for specific performance brought by a company connected with the bank’s borrowers in circumstances where the bank had not known of or consented to the proposed sale. After 5 days of hearing, involving a 3 day cross-examination of the Plaintiff’s key witness, the proceedings were discontinued against the Bank with costs. We had secured €250,000 by way of security for our client’s costs from the Plaintiff, which sum was fully recovered.
- Acted for a finance house in successfully defending proceedings alleging fraudulent misrepresentation.
- Advised the Examiner in the successful restructurings of a number of prominent examinerships including Aer Arann, Mothercare Ireland Limited, Chorus Communications, Traffic Group, Bestseller Retail Ireland Limited, Atlantic Home Care Limited.
- Advised a foreign State authority in the examinership of an Irish company, involving proceedings in the Irish High and Supreme Courts.
- Advised the successful investor in a non-consensual takeover of a company in examinership which was strongly opposed by the then-incumbent directors and ultimate shareholders, resulting in the saving of all employees’ jobs.
- Advising the US Trustee in bankruptcy of Sean Dunne.
- Acted for a financial institution in defending multiple proceedings claiming anti-competitive practices. Ultimately the proceedings were discontinued as against our client.
Education
- B.A. (Hons), NUI Galway, 1994.
- LL.B. (Hons), NUI Galway, 1997.
- Law Society of Ireland, admitted as a solicitor, 2001.
Memberships
- Law Society of Ireland
- Founding member of Restructuring & Insolvency Ireland (formerly the Irish Society of Insolvency Practitioners)
Articles
New EU Content Rules – Digital Services Act
Court of Appeal provides clarity on the Civil Liability Act
Covid-19 restrictions do not frustrate leases
Unsuccessful Examinership Not (Necessarily) The End Of The Road
Examinership - Preserving The Right To Pursue Guarantors
Liquidation Trumps Conditional Garnishee Order
Amendment to Order 122 of the Rules of the Superior Courts
PIA Appeal to be instituted by Debtor or PIP?
Unnotified Monitoring of Employee’s Emails is a Breach of the European Convention on Human Rights
Clarification on the role of a McKenzie Friend
Payment on account of costs pending taxation
Stay of subsequent action pending payment of costs
High Court remits examinership cases to Circuit Court
Application of Unfair Dismissals and Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Legislation to Directors
Gavin Simons
Partner