Lewis Silkin enhances Belfast team with appointment of four legal directors
2nd Oct 2025
The firm welcomes three new additions to its corporate, commercial/technology and data, teams, as well as a promotion within its employment side of the business
The Belfast office of law firm Lewis Silkin has strengthened its offering with the appointment of three legal directors across its corporate, commercial/technology and data teams, and the announcement of an internal promotion within its employment team, underlining the firm’s continued growth trajectory.
Lewis Silkin first established roots in Northern Ireland in 2021 after merging with specialist employment law firm Jones Cassidy Brett. IP, tech and media practice Forde Campbell joined forces with the firm in 2022.
These most recent appointments are the latest in Lewis Silkin’s Belfast growth story as the firm continues to expand, now employing over 70 lawyers, paralegals and support staff in Northern Ireland.
Ciara Fulton, partner and head of Lewis Silkin Belfast said: “We’re delighted to welcome three new members to our team, as well as developing and recognising the talent that we already have here in our office in Belfast. This growth comes from increased demand for both our corporate and employment legal services in NI. With many of our team being qualified across multiple jurisdictions, it means we can expand our GB and Ireland-wide networks even further.
“Hiring and promoting the best legal talent ensures that we can stay ahead of developments in the industries our clients work in.”
James Stewart, Caroline McNally and Mark Ward make up the three latest members to join Lewis Silkin’s Belfast team, whilst Kevin Gallagher has secured an internal promotion on the employment side of the firm.
James Stewart joins Lewis Silkin to lead the data, privacy and cyber team in Belfast. With previous experience as an in-house legal counsel and data protection officer to global, data-focused businesses, James brings a wealth of knowledge in policy drafting, incident responses and investigations, data subject rights and auditing across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, as well as England and Wales.
With over 15 years’ experience in advising both public and private sector clients on both complex commercial and technology projects, Caroline McNally’s specialisms include advising on the procurement, use and licensing of technology solutions, outsourcing and logistics, as well as routes to market, e-commerce and consumer contracts.
Mark Ward is an experienced corporate lawyer with a keen interest in digital and alternative legal services delivery (ALSP). Mark’s expertise spans transactional work in mergers and acquisitions, equity capital markets, investment funds and commercial matters, as well as having deep knowledge of the legal tech and ALSP market from founding and growing a market leading corporate and commercial ALSP team.
Having joined Lewis Silkin in 2022, Kevin Gallagher is part of the Belfast office’s Employment, Immigration and Reward team. Kevin is highly skilled in defending claims for clients in the Industrial Tribunal, Fair Employment Tribunal, the County Court and High Court in Northern Ireland, including complex discrimination, whistleblowing and unfair dismissal claims.
To learn more visit lewissilkin.com
