People | Partners | Ryan Dunleavy

Ryan Dunleavy

Partner

E: rdunleavy@harcusparker.co.uk

Ryan is a commercial litigation partner who conducts a wide range of complex, high-value cases. He also heads the firm’s technology, media and communications litigation practice, bringing extensive experience from both private practice and in-house roles. Having previously served as Group Legal Advisor for Associated Newspapers Limited, Ryan combines deep litigation expertise with practical commercial insight.

Legal Expertise

Ryan has a depth of experience in dealing with group litigation orders and representative actions, with most of his cases conducted in the High Court. He also handles matters in the appellate courts and before regulators, demonstrating his versatility across different legal forums.

His client base spans from consumers to high net worth individuals, as well as corporate clients, reflecting his ability to handle diverse and complex matters across different sectors. Over the course of his career, he has been a partner at other UK law firms and has managed three different teams of litigators.

Ryan’s unique background includes his previous role as Group Legal Advisor for Associated Newspapers Limited, which publishes The Daily Mail, the Mail on Sunday, MailOnline, Metro and metro.co.uk. This in-house experience provides him with valuable commercial perspective when advising clients on litigation strategy and risk management.

Recent Experience

Ryan is currently conducting a portfolio of consumer and breach of contract group cases, many of which are funded by third party litigation funders. He regularly acts for individuals and groups of claimants in commercial litigation matters, as well as in media, information and communications disputes. His expertise in securing and managing third party funding makes him particularly well-positioned to handle large-scale group actions.

Accreditations / Membership

Ryan is a Solicitor-Advocate (All Higher Courts), giving him rights of audience in all courts in England and Wales. He is also an International Association of Administrative Professionals Certified Information Privacy Professional – Europe, reflecting his expertise in data protection and privacy matters.

Industry Recognition

Ryan is regularly quoted as a legal expert in the national and international media, demonstrating his recognised expertise and thought leadership in commercial litigation and technology, media and communications law.

“[Ryan] was one of the first people to realise that GDPR presented a great opportunity to protect clients’ reputations. Indeed, he has proven himself to be something of a pioneer… ” – Spear’s 500 (2021)
‘‘Ryan Dunleavy is extremely hard-working and business-minded, very engaging and committed.’ – Legal 500 (2020)
‘Ryan… is a very experienced and focused professional, he can grasp multiple and complicated matters and can identify very quickly the most appropriate and best solution in resolving any forthcoming issue and/or problem.’ – Legal 500 (2020)
‘It is a real pleasure to have him as my legal representative. He is also very “human”, the kind of a professional who has, along with high professional standards, also such passion to feel and take on all the client’s personal feelings.’ – Legal 500 (2020)
‘He is tactically and commercially savvy and has an unflappable manner which clients appreciate and like.’ – Legal 500 (2020)

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