Clive Bellows, country head of Northern Trust in Ireland, attends a celebration of the expansion and refurbishment of Northern Trust’s office in Limerick with a ribbon cutting ceremony with the Minister for Finance Michael Noonan. Following the ceremony, Northern Trust’s Irish management hold a closed meeting with Noonan where they discuss their recommendations on a number of regulatory issues affecting Ireland – such as the approach of the Central Bank to the regulation of funds and fund service providers and the gold plating of European anti-money laundering legislation.

A lawyer working in financial services needs to be able to think laterally, says Michael Barr, a partner with A&L Goodbody, as 'clients do not want just a legal answer but rather someone who will work with them to get their product into the market in a successful and cost effective way'. Other attributes required include being able to take in and understand quickly new concepts and ideas, and the ability to work well with people at all levels within an organisation, to get the deal done.