WEALTH October 18, 2026 0 Comments

Why Relying on Legal Advice Alone Could Be the Biggest Mistake Irish Companies Make When Entering the US Market

Ever wondered why conquering the US market feels a bit like trying to tame a wild stallion? For Irish firms itching to expand, the allure of the American opportunity is magnetic—massive markets, deep pockets, and the chance to explode revenues on a scale that few other countries can offer. But here’s the kicker: the U.S. isn’t just one big cookie-cutter market—it’s a patchwork quilt of distinct states, each with its own rules, incentives, and quirks that can either skyrocket your business or leave you tangled in red tape. That’s exactly where Conor Kenny, Director of Transatlantic Business at Clark Hill Law LLP in Dublin, steps in. Drawing from years of experience dancing across regulatory minefields and steering companies through the labyrinth of U.S. commercial diversity, Conor isn’t just handing out legal advice—he’s providing the full playbook for thoughtful, strategic expansion. If you think launching in the U.S. is like opening one store and calling it a day, think again—it’s a multi-layered chess game, and knowing where and how to move can make all the difference. Ready to learn what it really takes to build a foothold on American soil? LEARN MORE

Conor Kenny, Director of Transatlantic Business at Clark Hill Law LLP, has advice for firms seeking to expand

For Irish companies looking to expand, the US offers a level of commercial opportunity that is difficult to match.

The size of the market, access to customers and capital, and potential to build significant revenues make the US a natural growth market for ambitious Irish businesses.

One of the strengths of the American market is its diversity. Different states and regions offer very different customer bases, sector strengths, incentives and routes to market.

For businesses that understand where their product or service has the strongest commercial fit, that creates an opportunity to enter selectively, establish a foothold and grow from there.

The upside can be substantial, but so too is the execution challenge. Companies need to make the right decisions on where to locate, how to structure the business, how to recruit or relocate key people, how tariffs and regulation may affect their model and how to navigate federal and state requirements.

That is changing what companies expect from their professional advisers. Legal advice remains critical, but businesses expanding into the US also need commercial insight, market-entry expertise and an understanding of the policy and regulatory environment.

It is a shift that sits at the centre of Conor Kenny’s work with Clark Hill in Dublin.

Kenny joined the international law firm after a career spent helping companies navigate cross-border expansion, including senior roles at the British Embassy and the US Embassy in Dublin. As Head of SelectUSA for the US government, he led a team supporting companies across northern Europe as they sought to establish and scale operations in the United States.

“The United States is often approached as though it were one uniform market,” Kenny says. “In reality, it is a highly fragmented commercial landscape, shaped by differences in state regulation, local state incentives, labour conditions and political priorities.”

Early in his career, Kenny worked with an Irish manufacturing company in South Carolina, gaining a practical understanding of how regional dynamics can shape an international company’s prospects in the US.

An international law firm such as Clark Hill is increasingly being asked to operate as a co-ordinating platform around a client’s expansion strategy, drawing together legal specialists with policy, regulatory and business-development perspectives.

At Clark Hill, that can mean supporting an Irish company from its earliest market-entry discussions through to corporate structuring, employment compliance, talent, trade exposure and expansion planning.

For companies targeting public-sector opportunities, it can also involve helping them understand procurement systems, certifications and the relationship-driven nature of federal, state and local government contracting.

Kenny says this broader model has become especially relevant as Irish and European companies take a more sophisticated view of US growth.

“Companies are asking more detailed questions than they might have in the past,” he says. “They want to know where they should consider entering, how they should structure, which incentives matter, what tariff exposure looks like, and how they can protect their assets as they scale.”

For companies in regulated or government-facing sectors, policy engagement has also moved up the agenda. In the US, commercial outcomes can be shaped by decisions at multiple levels of government from federal agencies and trade policy to state-level incentives, local economic-development priorities and industry advocacy.

This has heightened the value of government-relations expertise alongside traditional legal advice. A company may have a strong product and a clear market opportunity, but still need to understand how regulatory decisions, public funding programmes or procurement rules affect its ability to compete.

Trade is another area where commercial and legal issues increasingly overlap.

Manufacturers, exporters and businesses with complex supply chains must consider how tariff changes affect pricing, sourcing decisions, customer relationships and investment timelines. Immigration is also a critical business issue where a company needs to transfer founders, executives or technical personnel to establish a US operation.

“For a business expanding into the US, legal, commercial and policy considerations can collide very quickly,” Kenny says. “The value lies in being able to translate that complexity into practical next steps.”

Clark Hill’s Dublin presence is an important part of that proposition. It offers Irish businesses a local starting point for conversations about US growth, while connecting them to the firm’s wider US platform and specialist teams. For Kenny, this is an important distinction.

“It means companies can begin the conversation locally, with people who understand the Irish business environment and the questions Irish companies tend to ask when considering expansion,” he says.

The sectors driving this activity are diverse, spanning technology, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, aerospace, defence, AgTech, food and beverage and other businesses with export potential. Yet the common thread is a desire for a more structured route into the US market.

That, Kenny argues, is where the perception of a law firm as a provider of reactive legal support falls short.

“We are not simply helping companies solve isolated legal issues,” he says. “We are helping them think through the broader challenge of building a successful presence in one of the world’s most dynamic and demanding markets.”