Commercial Litigation: Top Insights 2025

As 2025 comes to a close, we take a look back at some of Commercial Litigation's hot topics during the year.

Dismissing proceedings for want of prosecution: the Supreme Court decision in Kirwan v. Connors & Ors

In a recent decision, the Irish Supreme Court has set out a new and simplified approach to applications to dismiss cases for want of prosecution.

In this video, Peter Bredin, Partner in our Commercial Litigation Group, outlines the background to this decision and the Kirwan v Connors case.

Professional Negligence and the Duty of Care: Lessons from the High Court

The High Court, in Ashdrum Lodge Ltd t/a Kiernan Homes v Barbouti & ors [2025] IEHC 522, has provided important clarification on the duty of care owed by architects to their clients, the extent to which a client’s conduct can affect an architect’s ability to discharge those duties, and the role of contributory negligence under the Civil Liability Act 1961 in assessing an architect’s liability.

Corporate Disputes: Fiduciary Duties owed to an Employer

In this article in our series on corporate disputes (our earlier briefing on derivative actions can be found here), we look at a recent Commercial Court case, which considered the legal framework governing fiduciary duties and the circumstances in which fiduciary obligations to a corporate employer can arise.  

Uncertainty Persists on the Future of the Green Claims Directive

In March 2023, the European Commission (Commission) detailed a proposal for a green claims directive (GCD Proposal), which intended to impose minimum requirements on companies who voluntarily make environmental claims about products or services  (for further detail see our two part series on Greenwashing here and  here).

However, on 20 June 2025, the Commission announced the withdrawal of the GCD Proposal and uncertainly remains as to its future status.

Corporate Disputes: Derivative Actions as a Shareholder Remedy

A derivative action refers to proceedings taken on behalf of a company by a member of that company. The right to issue derivative proceedings is not automatic and instead, leave to commence an action of this type must be granted by the High Court.

In this article, we look at the requirements to obtain approval from the court to bring a derivative action, as recently considered by the High Court in Sutton v Salumi Grazing Limited t/a Salumi Grazing & Ors [2025] IEHC 49 (Sutton).