A Supreme Court-licensed
Notary Public with 25 years of
international legal experience.

Appointment & Qualification

William Crean was appointed as a Notary Public by the Supreme Court of Ireland in 2011. In Ireland, the notarial qualification is obtained by passing a dedicated admission examination — it is an additional legal qualification, separate from solicitor admission, awarded to those who meet the standard required. William came first in the examination in his year.

The notarial appointment is made by the Supreme Court and is independent of solicitor practice. A Notary Public acts as an officer of public trust — authenticating documents for use in foreign legal systems, witnessing signatures for international effect, and certifying that Irish documents are genuine and correctly executed.

William is a member of the Faculty of Notaries Public in Ireland, the professional body for notaries in this jurisdiction.

Legal Career

William is a solicitor with 25 years of experience across Irish, EU, English, and Californian law. His career has spanned in-house roles at IDA Ireland, Allied Irish Banks, and Nelvana International — a Canadian media company operating its European distribution hub from Ireland — as well as nearly nine years running his own commercial law practice in Dublin, where he supervised solicitors and trainees and appeared in High Court commercial litigation.

He has worked extensively with cross-border documents, international contracts, and multi-jurisdictional transactions throughout his career. He has completed over 90 trade mark filings before the Irish Patents Office and EUIPO.

Why This Background Matters

A notarial act is only as good as the legal understanding behind it. William understands how Irish documents function in foreign legal systems — what foreign banks, courts, property registries and immigration authorities actually require — because he has worked at that interface throughout his career.

The form of a power of attorney that will be accepted in Spain is different from one that will work in the United States. A corporate document for a Hong Kong bank has different requirements from one going to a French notaire. William has the experience to get these things right, first time.

Jurisdictions

William is admitted as a solicitor in Ireland (Law Society of Ireland, 1999), as a solicitor in England & Wales (Solicitors Regulation Authority, 2010), and as an attorney in the State of California (State Bar of California, 2022). He holds a licence as a Trade Mark Agent from the Irish Patents Office (2006) and is registered as a Community Trademark Attorney before the EUIPO.

His academic qualifications include a BCL from University College Cork, a BA from the University of Toronto, and an LLM in EU Law from University College Dublin. He holds a Certificate in Data Protection from the Law Society of Ireland (2023).

Practice

William's notary practice is based at 34a Lower Main Street, Arklow, Co. Wicklow. He serves clients across Wicklow, Wexford, Dublin and Kildare, with mobile appointments available by prior arrangement, subject to availability. An additional fee applies for mobile appointments.

All appointments are by arrangement. Contact us to discuss your requirements and confirm availability.