Ciara is a partner in our Finance Group. She trained and qualified as a solicitor with Allen & Overy in London, spending over four years in their Real Estate and Corporate Finance Group.

Ciara has extensive experience advising clients across a broad range of domestic and international financings including real estate financing, acquisition financing, fund financing, corporate restructurings, syndicated lending, margin loans and ESG financing. Her particular focus is real estate and development finance, advising lenders (traditional and alternative), private equity funds and other investors in respect of both senior and mezzanine positions for investment, development, commercial, residential, hotel, student housing and forward fund financings.

In The Legal 500: Europe, Middle East & Africa, 2024, Ciara was ranked a Next Generation Partner: Banking & Finance (Tier 1).

Ciara Buckley currently serves on the Irish Commercial Real Estate Finance Committee. 

Relevant Experience

• Advising Wells Fargo in respect of its financing for Hines of various phases of the Cherrywood town centre development
• Advising Kennedy Wilson, in respect of its joint venture with AXA and their debt/equity investments in respect of a large portfolio of real estate assets with various lenders
• Advising Deutsche Bank in respect of an acquisition financing for an international real estate investment company.
• Advising Citibank in respect of a margin loan financing with an Irish fund
• Advising Ardstone in respect of its green loan funding from Nuveen.
• Advising Quadrant Real Estate Advisors in respect of its financing of a number of real estate facilities in Ireland
• Advising a syndicate of lenders in respect of a restructuring for the Interserve Group plc
• Advising Royal Bank of Canada in respect of a development financing for an international borrower
• Advising Wells Fargo as arranger and original lender in respect of a student housing financing for Hines
• Advising a PLC borrower in respect of the restructuring of its operating facility for its multi-jurisdictional group