IRELAND

Martin Blake

Toronto, ON

Martin Blake specializes in representing tourists and travelers who are injured in the United States. He is the current chair of The International Relations Committee of The American Association of Justice (AAJ), the national organization of Plaintiffs’ attorneys in the United States. He is listed in Best Lawyers in America and selected for inclusion in Northern California Super Lawyers since 2006. He is an elected member of The American College of Trial Lawyers, The International Academy of Trial Lawyers and The American Board of Trial Advocates. He has been nominated three times as “Trial Lawyer of the Year“ by San Francisco Trial Lawyers’ Association and is a recipient of ‘The Penguin Award’ from the AAJ International Practice Section for fighting anti-lawyer legislation in South Africa. He was admitted to the California Bar in 1981, Bar of England & Wales in 1980, and N. Ireland Bar in 1972. He holds an LL.B. from The Queen’s University, Belfast (1971) and a B.L. from Gray’s Inn, London (1972). He has extensive trial and settlement experience, including a $14 million pre-trial settlement in a Nevada bus crash case and a $10 million pre-trial settlement in the Bayview Industrial Park Fire Litigation. He served as President of the San Francisco Trial Lawyers’ Association, Chair of the American Association of Justice’s International Practice and Premises Liability Sections and its International Relations Committee, Temporary Judge for San Francisco Superior Court, and on the Executive Committee of the California State Bar Litigation Section. He was also an Adjunct Professor of Law at The University of California, Hastings Law School from 1991-2007.

Gerard O’Hare

Gerard O’Hare is the founding member of the firm and acts as a consultant. He has particular expertise in defence litigation, Health and Safety at Work Legislation, Licensing Law, Sports Law, Medical Negligence, Commercial Litigation, and personal injury claims. He is noted for his pragmatic approach and extensive experience in commercial and domestic conveyancing.

John O’Halloran

Bronx, NY

John O’Halloran, Esq., is an associate at the Law Offices of Thomas J. Lavin, P.C. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in politics at Galway University, Ireland (1981), a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics cum laude from Lehman College (1991), and a Juris Doctor degree from SUNY Buffalo Law School (1995). He launched a solo law practice in Buffalo, New York, in 1996 before joining the Law Offices of Thomas J. Lavin in 1999. He is admitted to practice law in New York (1996), U.S. District Court in the Western District of New York (1996), U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York (2000), and as a Solicitor in Ireland (2006). He is a member of the Bronx County Bar Association, the New York Bar Association, the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, the American Association of Justice, and the Law Society of Ireland. He focuses on personal injury, motor vehicle accidents, and construction accidents.

Brian Turkington

Brian Turkington is a Partner specializing in personal injury matters. He graduated from the University of Northumbria, Newcastle Upon Tyne in 2005 with an Honours Degree in Law and was admitted to the Roll of Solicitors in Northern Ireland in 2009. He joined McCartan Turkington Breen in 2006 and became Partner in 2025.

Diarmuid McKeown

Diarmuid has practiced over a wide area of law for over 40 years both in Northern Ireland and England & Wales. In the 90’s he established McKeowns initially as a specialist Personal Injury Practice in St Albans where it grew to be one of the leading practices in the UK. Diarmuid maintains a keen interest in assisting those afflicted with mental health issues and in 2013 he became a Director of Action Mental Health. More recently he has been appointed as a Non Alcoholic Trustee of the General Services Board of Alcoholic Anonymous Ireland and travels the country extensively in this role assisting with the promotion of the good works that the Fellowship perform in helping those afflicted with the addiction. His favourite pastimes include rambling, golf, cinema and theatre as well as spending time with his grandchildren.

Joseph "Terry" Geoghegan

Chicago, IL

Joseph 'Terry' Geoghegan, a former solicitor in the Republic of Ireland, is an attorney with extensive experience trying cases in Cook County Law Division, specializing in medical negligence, products liability, construction, and automobile negligence.