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Eilís McDonald

A-lishShe/herSenior Associate
. . . is very passionate and has expert knowledge of all aspects of the law on which she provides advice and manages to take complex or nuanced legislative requirements and distil those into practical talking points and provide pragmatic advice.
— Legal 500
Dublin
About

Eilís specialises in data, privacy and cyber law, and is dual qualified in the UK and Ireland.

She advises international private and public companies on matters relating to AI, use of data, commercial and compliance issues, with a particular focus on the Life Sciences, Healthcare and Financial Services sectors. Eilís plays a lead role in advising clients on the design and implementation of enterprise-wide data governance structures, including policies, processes, and risk management frameworks.

Eilís was previously seconded to a leading global beverages company to help establish their GDPR compliance framework, and secondment to one of Ireland’s newest insurance providers, where she led negotiations for key commercial contracts and advised on digital and regulatory strategy.

Eilís lectures and presents on privacy and tech law, including at Trinity College Dublin and international legal forums. She is the co-chair of DLA Piper's Leadership Alliance for Women's UK and Irish chapters and is actively involved with campaigning and awareness raising in respect of gender equality in the legal profession.

Areas of FocusIntellectual PropertyTechnology and Commercial TransactionsTechnology
Professional QualificationsAdmitted as a Solicitor with the Law Society of ScotlandSolicitor regulated by the Law Society of Ireland

EXPERIENCE

  • Advising a listed global biotechnology company on all GDPR compliance requirements including their data mapping and vendor diligence, data processing agreements, and risk assessments, and also in respect of their corporate website builds across Europe.
  • Advising a life sciences conglomerate on the data protection compliance obligations to be adopted by its SpinCo post a corporate reorganisation, as part of a global team.
  • Advising an international radiology provider following a reportable data breach involving the loss of patient data.
  • Advising a multinational packaging company on the migration and centralisation of global HR software in respect of over 46,000 employees, which included coordinating advice across 39 jurisdictions.
  • Advising a listed global biotechnology company on regulatory and commercial contract advice associated with clinical trials across Europe, including by carrying out data protection impact assessments, negotiating clinical trial agreements and advising on obligations under the Clinical Trials Regulation.
  • Advising a global social media company on the creation and remediation of legitimate interest assessments in respect of core processing activities which take place across their platform. This involved strategic advice around consent collection of cookies and other metadata in relation to ad-tech used on the app and interaction with advertisement measurement partners.
  • Advising one of Ireland's leading retail banks on their international data transfer strategy following the Schrems II Decision, which involved advising on over 35 transfer impact assessments and associated vendor contract remediations.
  • Advising an insurance provider on the strategic implications and requirements associated with sharing claimant personal data on an intragroup basis.
Languages
  • English

RECOGNITIONS

  • Legal 500 Key Lawyer:
    • "Eilis McDonald is deeply knowledgeable about the industry, timely and helpful and a pleasure to work with."
    • “Eilis is...solution orientated and practical in [her] approach. [She is] incredibly adaptable to my needs as a client and builds solutions and provide advice based on my organisation’s needs.”
    • “[Eilis]…is passionate about her areas of expertise and brings fresh energy to complex issues. She is pragmatic and commercial in her advices and understands the varied needs of her client.”
Education
  • University of Glasgow, Diploma in Legal Practice, 2017
  • University of Aberdeen, LLB (Hons), 2016

Publications

Prior Experience

  • Secondment to Heineken UK Limited for 6 months, assisting mainly with their GDPR compliance program, and with the migration and IT outsourcing of key staff, customer and product data bases to the cloud.

My latest insights

Publication
Architecture_reflection_P_0819

Engaging vendors in the financial sector: EDPB clarifications mean more mapping and...

8 November 2024 .5 minute read

News
Aerial view of ocean

DLA Piper advises Permanent TSB on partnership with Kyndryl, the world’s largest IT...

25 February 2022 .4 minute read

Publication
Website Hero Abstract Architectural Shapes

International Data Transfers: The Evolving Landscape with ICQ Magazine

7 January 2021 .9 minute read

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Connect

Phone

+353 1 436 5450
(Work, Dublin)