WEALTH May 1, 2026 0 Comments

How Mark Garrett is Disrupting the Legal World and What It Means for Your Future Success

Ever wonder what it really takes to keep Ireland’s booming legal sector ticking in a world that’s changing faster than you can say “objection”? Mark Garrett, the director general of the Law Society of Ireland, is right in the thick of it. Since 2000, the number of practicing solicitors in Ireland has more than doubled—yeah, you heard that right, over 100% growth—and with that surge, the Law Society’s role has skyrocketed too, becoming a critical linchpin in the regulation and representation of this vibrant profession. Garrett, no stranger to power moves himself, having navigated the political and corporate jungles alike, breaks down how solicitors have evolved beyond the courtroom into vital players fueling Ireland’s wallet-bulging, €500 billion economy. But here’s the twist: amidst the AI frenzy and the rush of tech invasions into legal processes, it turns out that the timeless magic of human insight—the kind of stuff you just can’t code—still reigns supreme. Intrigued? You should be. Dive into how the Irish legal landscape is not just surviving but thriving, adapting, and positioning itself as a global heavyweight in the age of innovation and international dispute showdown. LEARN MORE

Law Society of Ireland director general Mark Garrett talks to Sarah Freeman about the evolving role of solicitors

With the number of practising solicitors in Ireland up by over 100 per cent since 2000, the Law Society of Ireland’s importance as the regulatory and representative body of the profession has become more pronounced.

Mark Garrett, who took on the role of director general over four years ago, can attest to this dramatic change.

With a background in public policy, he has a CV that includes serving as chief of staff for Eamon Gilmore during the former Labour leader’s time as Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade from 2011 to 2014, as well as managing director of global consulting firm Teneo.

“The numbers show significant growth in solicitors over the last 25 years. If you look at it, there are almost 12,900 practising solicitors in Ireland today,” Garrett says.

The vast majority of this growth, Garrett says, is in the commercial sector, supporting the multinational, sophisticated home-grown economy that has developed over that time.

“The Irish economy has grown from roughly [a] €100bn GDP in the year 2000 to over €500bn and the reality is that legal services are just a vital foundation stone for a healthy economy as they are for a healthy democracy and society.”

Addressing any glaring misconceptions the public may have about solicitors right now, Garrett argues that they are one of the core facilitators of an economy.

“If you cannot execute a contract, a commercial arrangement, protect your IP which is so vital to the Irish economy, [it’s a problem]. So [solicitors are] a vital economic service to the Irish economy, to supporting jobs in Ireland.”

He adds that today almost 30 per cent of solicitors work in-house with a spread across Irish companies, multinationals based out of Ireland, European-headquartered tech organisations and pharmaceuticals, amongst others.

Garrett points to a KPMG report published in October 2025 entitled Economic Impacts of the Irish Legal Profession, which shows that €1.4bn worth of Irish legal services are exported internationally.

This means international entities based somewhere in the UK or the US are paying that amount in “hard-earned money” for Irish expertise.

“Exports of Irish whiskey are a billion [euro]. So [if] you put that into context, lawyers are earning more international cash than Irish whiskey.”

Along with the growth in solicitors, the advent of AI and the increasing use of it in legal proceedings begs the question if today’s graduates need to learn certain skills in order to stay competitive.

“There is a fascination and I think an understanding and an embracing of the technology, and some weariness as well about some of the potential consequences.

“But it is a fact of life, it’s a fact of business. The legal profession is evolving using AI tools, adapting to it and looking at both the possibilities as well as the challenges.”

However, Garrett adds, “From a graduate point of view, the reality of the skills that it takes to have a successful career, I don’t think fundamentally will change. They are the human skills, the added-value skills of working with people, which will not go away anytime soon. Because the reality is that AI may be the latest [technology], and it’s significant, but there will be others in the future.

“[What’s fundamental] is the knowledge and understanding of being able to read the room, whether that be virtual or physical, the people you’re working with, to be able to lead a team, to be able to adapt from a solicitor’s point of view, who is your client, and understanding what their actual needs are, as opposed to just the law.

“Those [skills] are going to be even more valuable in a world that is permeated by AI.”

With the advent of AI in mind, Garrett points to intellectual property, who owns it and the integrity of it as a legal issue for businesses and individuals that will continue to dominate over the next decade.

“We look at the deepfake AIs that have been used in everything from entertainment through to elections and the potential undermining of democratic or other electoral systems that may be out there. I think intellectual property, the understanding of it and the enforcement of it will evolve, and become a very robust issue with a massive legal dimension.”

Garrett sees opportunities for reform in the legal system and says there is a dearth of viable non-court remedies in Ireland.

“We’ve a very underdeveloped system of alternatives to court in this country. We have a system where courts are seen as the opportunity to resolve disputes, and long may that continue as a well-trusted, successful [system], but the reality here is it is an expensive thing to do.

“In areas of law such as family law, there is a very underdeveloped sense of mediation or resolving issues earlier. Whether they be judges, solicitors [or] barristers, they would probably advise any client or anybody taking a case to try and avoid going to court.

“There was legislation passed a number of years ago to establish a mediation council here to develop mediation as an alternative, and that is yet to be formally established. So the law has passed, but it has not started its work.”

Garrett sees a real opportunity for Ireland to step up in this area.

Mark Garrett — Building of The Law Society of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland

“Post-Brexit in particular, where so much of international dispute resolution goes on in London, we have an advantage here in Ireland as being the only common law, English-language-speaking country within the EU.

“With that in mind, there’s a real opportunity for us to build Ireland as a location for international dispute resolution, as well as obviously, clearly developing that sort of infrastructure for domestic use as well.”

Garrett’s hope for viable alternatives to traditional litigation is quickly becoming a reality with news, just before going to print, that Ireland has been selected as the European base for the International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR) Ireland, a new international arbitration hub aimed at resolving commercial disputes between US and European companies.

Photo: Law Society of Ireland director general Mark Garrett