McCann FitzGerald was the only Irish firm to win a Standout award for its work with innovative medical devices and solutions provider, DePuy International Limited, to develop an alternative dispute resolution process to free up the courts of lengthy patient claims following the client’s voluntary recall of allegedly faulty hip implants.

McCann FitzGerald also received two Commended awards for New Business and Service Delivery Models and for Driving Value.

Meanwhile, Matheson was ranked Ireland’s most innovative law firm with an overall ranking of 20th in the FT50, climbing 24 places from 2016.

Matheson also received Commended awards in the Legal Expertise, Strategy and Changing Behaviour, Collaboration and New Products and Services categories, being the only Irish firm to be commended in the three of those categories.

Commenting, Barry Devereux, managing partner at McCann FitzGerald, said: “Innovation has been the key to ensuring that McCann FitzGerald is at the cutting edge of legal services delivery, not just in Ireland but globally.

“Technology is having a transformative effect on all industries and the legal services sector is no exception. The choice is to drive onwards and to progress, or risk becoming irrelevant which is why we have put innovation at the heart of our strategy.

“Businesses today expect more from their suppliers so they can give back more to their customers and it’s no different for the legal services sector. We have had to find ways of doing more for less and we are delighted that the Financial Times has recognised our achievements.”

Michael Jackson, managing partner at Matheson, said: “We are delighted that Matheson has been recognised for leading the way in legal innovation. This achievement is testament to the high standard of service we continue to provide to our clients while at the same time demonstrating the breadth of our legal expertise across a number of complex legal matters.”