This Practice Note provides an outline of the law in relation to legal costs in civil proceedings in Ireland. It considers Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 (Ireland), s 150 (LSRA 2015 (IRL)) and the requirements of a section 150 notice. It also considers the legal framework for legal costs, the requirement for a bill of costs, the categories of legal costs, the general rule in relation to costs, recoverable costs and adjudication of costs, costs on interim applications, lodgements and tenders in respect of costs and the steps taken to minimise costs. Finally, it looks at some recent developments and reform in this area. For an analysis of the Irish position on third party litigation funding, see Practice Note: Ireland—Third-party litigation funding. Legal costs/legal fees Legal costs are described as costs incurred between parties in relation to legal proceedings. They apply to contentious and non-contentious work and include money paid to legal professionals, witnesses and third parties. Litigation costs, which this Practice Note concerns, are a specific

When carrying out legal due diligence it is likely that a review of material contracts will take place, following which each material contract will be summarised in a legal due diligence report. Using the same template for the review of each contract will assist the review process and make sure that there is consistency in the style and language used in the due diligence report itself. This template provides a checklist of the issues and contractual provisions that the lawyer in charge of due diligence wishes

Dated [insert date] This form of request for further information would be used following a review by the buyer and its advisers of the information and documentation received from the seller in response to the initial due diligence questionnaire. Questions may be added to the relevant sections of this Precedent as necessary and where no further information is needed (or a section is not applicable to the transaction in question), the section can simply be deleted. This form of request for further information would be used following a review by the buyer and its advisers of the information and documentation received from the seller in response to the initial due diligence questionnaire. Questions may be added to the relevant

Dated [insert date] This form of request for further information would be used following a review by the buyer and its advisers of the information and documentation received from the seller in response to the initial due diligence questionnaire. Questions may be added to the relevant sections of this Precedent as necessary and where no further information is needed (or a section is not applicable to the transaction in question), the section can simply be deleted. This form of request for further information would be used following a review by the buyer and its advisers of the information and documentation received from the seller in response

This report is a template legal due diligence report for use in connection with a proposed share purchase, to be prepared by the buyer's solicitors on the instructions of the buyer. This is a standard, long form (or detailed) report, which comprises a detailed review of the target group and its business. An ‘exceptions’ report is a shorter version of this report that details only exceptional matters of particular relevance to the proposed transaction and importance to the client generally. This may be preferable for the client in the circumstances of the transaction (eg there is a limited time available to conduct the review or the client has sufficient information on the target). However, clear instructions should be taken to ensure that the correct form of the report is prepared. Project [insert project name] Prepared for [Insert addressee name] [Insert date of report] INDEX Report A. Introduction B. Executive summary C. Detailed report 1 Corporate and structural matters 2 Business and trading arrangements 3 Intellectual property 4 Information technology 5 Data protection 6 Banking and finance 7 Employees 8 Pensions 9 Real property 11 Insurance 10 Litigation and

It is common practice to use legal opinions in the vast majority of cross-border finance transactions. They provide the addressee of the legal opinion with information as to matters of law that relate to a particular transaction. A legal opinion expresses legal conclusions in relation to a particular transaction and would not usually provide reasons or discuss legal arguments. The opinion will generally not be given on questions of fact. Law firms will need to give careful consideration where an opinion is requested to matters of mixed fact and law. An example of this involves execution of documents. It is a legal matter whether, if a document is executed on behalf of an Irish company by an authorised officer, it has been validly executed. It is a factual question whether the document has actually been signed by a person authorised to do so. It will often be more appropriate to deal with factual matters through assumptions in the opinion letter or, where relevant, through warranties

It is common practice to use legal opinions in the vast majority of cross-border finance transactions. They provide the addressee of the legal opinion with information as to matters of law that relate to a particular transaction. A legal opinion expresses legal conclusions in relation to a particular transaction and would not usually provide reasons or discuss legal arguments. The opinion will generally not be given on questions of fact. Law firms will need to give careful consideration where an opinion is requested to matters of mixed fact and law. An example of this involves execution of documents. It is a legal matter whether, if a document is executed on behalf of an Irish company by an authorised officer, it has been validly executed. It is a factual question whether the document has actually been signed by a person authorised to do so. It will often be more appropriate to deal with factual matters through assumptions in the opinion letter or, where relevant, through warranties

Legal opinions are invariably used in cross-border financing transactions. They are usually either a condition precedent to funding or a condition precedent to the signing of the finance documentation. They provide the addressee of the legal opinion with information on the legal risks involved in a transaction. Although they are seen across many different types of financing transactions, they can be tricky to deal with from both a legal and practical perspective and, as such, should be discussed and agreed as soon as possible in the transaction process. This Practice Note explains: • what legal opinions are • when they are used • who can rely on them • what they cover • how legal opinions are used in cross-border transactions, and • the structure of a typical opinion letter For more information, see Practice Notes: Conditions precedent,Ireland—How to instruct and manage local counsel in a finance transaction and How to draft and review legal opinions in loan transactions For an example of an Irish law legal opinion, see Precedents: Ireland—Legal opinion

Scope of this Practice Note This Practice Note explores the concept of legal professional privilege in civil litigation. It explains what is meant by legal professional privilege and details the components of legal advice privilege and litigation privilege. It also considers the concepts of common interest and without prejudice privilege. What is legal professional privilege Legal professional privilege is the main class of privilege invoked in discovery. The role of legal professional privilege is for the proper administration of justice and to safeguard confidentiality between client and lawyer. Legal professional privilege consists of ‘legal advice privilege’ and ‘litigation privilege’. A ‘without prejudice privilege’ is a branch of legal professional privilege while ‘common interest privilege’ can operate to extend legal professional privilege. The three key elements of legal professional privilege are: • privilege only attaches to confidential communications • privilege belongs to the client, and • content / context of a document is determinative Who is a ‘lawyer’ In the context of legal professional privilege, ‘lawyer’ only extends to legal professionals

What is legal professional privilege? Legal professional privilege (LPP) protects confidential communications made either: • between a lawyer and client for the dominant purpose of obtaining or providing legal advice, or • between a client, lawyer or third parties for the dominant purpose of existing or reasonably contemplated litigation LPP is not merely a rule of evidence but a substantive legal right, recognised as fundamental to the administration of justice. It reflects the principle that a person must be free to consult a lawyer in confidence, without fear that those communications will later be disclosed to an opposing party or to the State. In fraud claims, disputes concerning the scope and application of LPP are common. This is particularly so in high-value commercial fraud claims involving allegations of dishonesty, concealment or misuse of funds, and where civil proceedings may run in parallel with regulatory or criminal investigations. Claimants may seek to challenge claims of privilege on the basis that communications were not created for the purpose of legal advice or litigation, or that

This Practice Note will assist in-house lawyers in Ireland in the practical application of legal professional privilege (LPP) within their business. This note addresses: • legal advice privilege, and • litigation privilege being the two forms of LPP, and considers: • the duration of each type • how LPP may be waived, and • any exceptions to the application of LPP to communications of in-house lawyers What is LPP? LPP is a composite term for: • legal advice privilege, and • litigation privilege LPP protects the confidentiality of written and oral communications from disclosure to a third party. Legal advice privilege Legal advice privilege protects confidential communications between a lawyer and their client, which are made for the purpose of giving or receiving legal advice. Such communications may be oral or written. Duration of legal advice privilege Legal advice privilege attaches to the communication indefinitely and persists beyond the lawyer/client relationship. Therefore, once properly asserted the communication

This Precedent is a Legal professional privilege—top ten tips document that is intended to be used to highlight key messages to staff on how to attract and then protect legal professional privilege. For practical guidance for in-house lawyers in Ireland on the scope and application of legal professional privilege, see Practice Note: Ireland—Legal professional privilege: application to in-house counsel. This Legal professional privilege—top ten tips document highlights key messages on how to attract and then protect legal