Practices

Consumer Law

Our Consumer Law team has expertise ranging from providing pragmatic day-to-day compliance advice to successfully acting in significant regulatory investigations, enforcement actions and litigation.

Our expertise:

We advise Irish and international clients across all sectors on a range of consumer law issues including consumer complaints, regulatory action, and litigation. Key areas include:

Day-to-day compliance: advising on a range of consumer protection issues the subject of regulatory scrutiny, with pricing, consumer reviews, environmental claims, and misleading practices all being very topical.
Responding to Consumer Complaints: strategic response to consumer complaints, as well as defence of consumer complaints before regulatory authorities (e.g. the Advertising Standards Authority).
Regulatory Investigations & Enforcement: advising in relation to information requests, unannounced inspections, enforcement risks and trends, negotiation of remedies to avoid enforcement action, enforcement actions and prosecutions.
Defending Consumer Litigation: representation in consumer claims and advising on litigation strategy to contain reputational and financial exposure. Particular experience of defending mass consumer claims.

‘The team excels in both contentious and non-contentious regulatory and administrative matters. Frequently advising on investigations, enforcement actions, and judicial review proceedings.’

The Legal 500, 2025

Key highlights include acting for:

Commission for Communications Regulation: in relation to its investigation and finding of non-compliance against Virgin Media and its subsequent successful Commercial Court proceedings relating to Regulation 25(6)(b) of the Universal Service Regulations (“…the undertaking shall ensure that conditions and procedures for contract termination do not act as a disincentive to a consumer to changing service provider”).
Financial Institutions: in relation to complaints made by customers to the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman.
A Regulator: in an investigation in relation to suspected misleading commercial practices being engaged in by a regulated entity in breach of the Consumer Protection Act 2007.
Financial Institutions: in relation to the Central Bank of Ireland’s tracker mortgage inquiry, redress schemes and related proceedings issued by borrowers.
A Regulator: in relation to various investigations into suspected breaches of the European Union (Electronic Communications Code) Regulations 2022 (S.I. No. 444 of 2022) and subsequent enforcement action.
A Financial Institution: as lead counsel providing strategic advice for the management of 100+ sets of customer proceedings and associated complaints across a number of different European jurisdictions, in addition to Irish regulatory advice.
A Financial Institution: in relation to an investigation by the Central Bank of Ireland, concerning allegations of mis-selling of payment protection insurance in breach of regulatory requirements contained in the Consumer Protection Code.
A Financial Institution: in relation to proceedings brought by consumers alleging the mis-selling of investment products.
A Stockbroker and Investment Intermediary: in relation to allegations of mis-selling of investment products and breaches of regulatory requirements, particularly focused on consumer law.