LLM student awarded Philip Lee Islamic Finance Law Prize

Monday, September 26, 2022 - 10:30

LLM (International Business Law) student Niamh Cumiskey was awarded the Philip Lee Islamic Finance Law Prize, kindly sponsored by law firm Philip Lee LLP. The prize involved a 10-week placement with the law firm, and was awarded to Niamh following a competitive interview process as part of the Islamic Finance Law module at Maynooth University’s School of Law and Criminology.
 
Commenting on the collaboration, Philip Lee LLP noted that it was “delighted to be part of Maynooth’s Islamic Finance Law module. The selected candidate (Niamh Cumiskey) completed a 10-week placement with the firm as part of the prize awarded for this module.  Niamh was an exceptional candidate, and it was a pleasure to have her be part of the Philip Lee team.”
 
After finishing her placement, Niamh reflected:
 
I think it is great that on completion of the Islamic Finance Law module there is an opportunity to complete an internship at Philip Lee LLP. It is one of the only firms in Ireland that deals with Islamic Finance, and you get the opportunity to work with partners in that area. I really enjoyed my time at Philip Lee LLP. The people are very welcoming, and I was provided with great training on different areas of law during my placement. I worked closely with Simon O'Neill, a Banking and Finance partner who also specialises in Islamic Finance. It was great working with Simon as I really got a feel for how law is applied in practice rather than just in theory. I would definitely recommend the placement at Philip Lee LLP as it is a great, fast-growing law firm in Ireland and in ten weeks I was provided with excellent training and work experience. 
 
Maynooth University is the only university in Ireland to have a dedicated Islamic Finance Law module, which is available on the LLM (International Business Law) and LLM (Global Legal Studies) programmes. Students learn about the building blocks of Islamic Finance transactions, explore the underlying prohibitions shaping the Islamic Finance market and study common contractual forms used in contemporary Islamic Finance activities. This module is designed to be practice focused, providing students with skills that they can use within a legal or business environment.
 
Commenting on the module and the prize, Head of the School of Law and Criminology Dr Fergus Ryan noted:
 
I am delighted that Niamh has won the Philip Lee Islamic Finance Law Prize and warmly congratulate her on this wonderful achievement. I wish her every success in her future career. Maynooth University School of Law and Criminology is very proud of its long-standing commitment to the teaching and study of Islamic Finance Law. We are particularly grateful to our colleague Dr Edana Richardson, who has championed teaching and research in this field at Maynooth, and to Philip Lee LLP for its sponsorship of this prize. We are delighted to be associated with Philip Lee LLP given the leading role it plays in the practice of Islamic Finance Law.