Our People
Jim Stafford
Jim qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1987. He is one of Ireland’s leading Corporate Recovery and Insolvency specialists.
He has had extensive practical experience of all types of industries, ranging from aerospace and mining to hotels, construction and IT.
He also has extensive experience of resolving shareholder disputes where he uses his expert knowledge of the Companies Acts, tax legislation and case law and his extensive negotiating expertise to formulate solutions.
He is an expert on corporate governance and regularly advises Boards on corporate governance issues. He has assisted a number of directors to successfully defend Restriction applications.
He drafted the complete syllabus for the Diploma in Insolvency course run by Chartered Accountants Ireland. He wrote and presents two of the six modules on the course. Jim was selected by the CAI to present the Module on Corporate Turnaround Strategies given his expertise in the area.
He is also engaged by Chartered Accountants Ireland as a lecturer for their CPD (Continuous Professional Development) in the areas of Corporate Recovery, Insolvency, Personal Bankruptcy and Credit Management. He is frequently asked to speak about specialist Corporate Recovery and Insolvency topics by other institutes and organisations such as the Irish Institute of Credit Management, EBS, Goodbody Stockbrokers, IBRC, Bank of Ireland, Investec and KBC Bank. Jim has contributed numerous technical articles on Corporate Recovery and Insolvency for the magazines of the three leading accountancy bodies in Ireland, and for the Sunday Business Post. He has also done a number of radio and television interviews on Corporate Recovery and Insolvency.
He has extensive experience of all areas of Litigation Support and Expert witness. He has worked with private clients, SMEs, national companies, multi-nationals, county councils and various Government and Regulatory agencies in defending and bringing proceedings.
He is a member of the Council of The Irish Society of Insolvency Practitioners, a group which was established in 2004 as a forum for the development of expertise and experience of those practicing in the insolvency profession in Ireland. He is chairman of the Representation Committee of ISIP. He is member of the Fellows committee of the Irish Institute of Credit Management.
He is authorised to act as a Personal Insolvency Practitioner by the Insolvency Service of Ireland.
Tom Murray
Tom qualified as a Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA) in 1997 whilst working with Chase Manhattan Bank. Tom has over 20 years experience in accounting and business roles.
He is one of Ireland’s most experienced corporate recovery and turnaround practitioners and was one of the first Personal Insolvency Practitioners licensed in Ireland.
He also is an experienced Corporate Financier with particular interest and expertise in the area of equity and debt fund raising, and the buying and selling of businesses.
He has extensive experience of all areas of Litigation Support and Expert witness. He has worked with private clients, SMEs, national companies, multi-nationals, county councils and various Government and Regulatory agencies in defending and bringing proceedings.
He is heavily involved with the ACCA accountancy body and is a past President of ACCA Ireland. He represented ACCA Ireland at the ACCA International Assembly in 2011. He was nominated in January 2021 by ACCA to represent it on the the CCABI insolvency Committee.
He is engaged by the three leading Accountancy bodies in Ireland as a lecturer for their CPD (Continuous Professional Development) in the area of Corporate Recovery, Insolvency and Personal Bankruptcy. Tom has written and presented two of the six modules in the Diploma in Insolvency run by Chartered Accountants Ireland.
He has contributed technical articles on Corporate Recovery and Insolvency for the magazines of the three leading Accountancy bodies in Ireland. He is currently writing a monthly column in this area for Accounting and Business Ireland – the magazine of ACCA Ireland.
He was asked to make numerous media appearance as an Insolvency expert and has appeared on RTE’s main news bulletins, TV3, Sky News, Newstalk and Today FM for comments on insolvency issues and business matters.
He is also a member of The Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Ireland, has a diploma in Forensic Accounting and is a Certified Mediator. He is authorised to act as a Personal Insolvency Practitioner by the Insolvency Service of Ireland.
Andrew Hendrick
Andrew graduated with a Bachelor of Business Studies (Honours) in Accounting degree before entering a Chartered Accountant’s training contract with Horwath Bastow Charleton (now Crowe Horwath).
Since joining Friel Stafford in 2009 Andrew has been responsible for a large volume of the firm’s insolvency assignments including Creditors Voluntary Liquidations, Fixed Charge Receiverships and Receiver/Manager appointments, Corporate and Personal Debt Restructuring, NAMA Debtor Business Plans and Financial Monitoring, Independent Business Reviews and Schemes of Arrangement.
Andrew successfully completed the Certificate in Personal Insolvency with Chartered Accountants Ireland in 2013 and is eligible to register as a Personal Insolvency Practitioner with the Insolvency Service of Ireland. Andrew also assists clients wishing to file for bankruptcy or to enter into a Personal Insolvency Arrangement or Debt Settlement Arrangement.
He manages the firms Accounting, Auditing, Taxation and Company Secretarial Services for our owner managed business clients.
Gráinne Stafford
Gráinne Stafford BSc Hons Management, MBA, Fellow Institute of Management Consultants and Advisors (FIMCA) Certified Management Consultant (CMC)
She has a proven track record in Management Consultancy and extensive experience of Strategic Planning and Management in the US, UK and Ireland. Gráinne has over 25 years experiencein consultancy and received her MBA in the US in 1989. From 1990 to 1994, Gráinne was an executive consultant with KPMG in London where she spent over four years working on Strategic Consultancy projects. In 1994 Gráinne established Friel Stafford Consulting, specialising in the provision of strategic advice and change management to clients.
Anthony Glennon
Anthony is a Chartered Certified Accountant who joined Friel Stafford in 2015 and is a Senior Manager in the Restructuring Advisory team.
Anthony has extensive corporate restructuring experience, undertaking examinerships, receiverships, liquidations and solvent liquidations across a wide variety of sectors including leisure, manufacturing, construction, newspaper and professional services.
Anthony’s team are also responsible for business valuation services to support tax structures, tax appeals and marital and shareholder disputes.
Ahsan Syed
Ahsan is a Chartered Certified Accountant who joined Friel Stafford in 2017 and is a Senior Manager in the Restructuring Advisory team.
Ahsan’s wide variety of sector experience ranges from manufacturing and construction through to not-for-profit, although his main focus has been owner-managed businesses.
His significant corporate experience is supplemented by extensive forensic accounting knowledge developed through the delivery of various complex fraud and family law assignments.
Ahsan is a member of the Irish Society of Insolvency Practitioners.
Ciara Nolan
Ciara joined Friel Stafford in 1996 and is a Manager in our Personal Insolvency department.
She has a particular specialism in formulating and negotiating informal debt solutions without the need for court resolution.
Recent assignments include the a number of complicated multi creditor personal insolvency arrangements and bankruptcies for high net worth individuals.
