Kate Colleary is internationally recognised as leading global expert in the fields of Data Protection, Privacy and AI. Kate is the Irish country leader for the IAPP (International Association of Privacy Professionals) and has been awarded the prestigious Westin Emeritus Fellow title, recognising world leaders in data protection & privacy. Kate has been awarded ‘Best in Data Protection’ by the Global 100 which recognises the world’s leading individuals in their areas of specialisation and was awarded “Data Protection Advisory Expert of the Year in Ireland“ for 2023 by The Lawyer network. She has many years of experience acting as external DPO for global tech, FinTech, security and healthcare clients, and provides data protection services, advice and training across a broad range of sectors.  

Kate gained an honours degree in law from Trinity College Dublin in 1995. She has been a qualified lawyer since 1999, working in large corporate law firms for almost two decades. Before founding Pembroke Privacy, Kate led the Data Protection team of a large international law firm.  

Kate delivers IAPP’s CIPP/E & CIPM training globally.  She is on the faculty of the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland and King’s Inns, lecturing on postgraduate programmes and has authored various white papers including an expert paper on the data protection regime in Ireland, which was presented at the international congress of European judges in the Hague. She was one of only three Irish lawyers nominated for a Women in Law Award by the UK’s Lawyer Magazine. She regularly speaks at conferences in the US, Europe, Middle East and Asia and is a Data Guidance expert, providing content on their global platform.  

Kate has featured in the New York Times, Washington Post, and has appeared on RTE television and radio, BBC Radio 4, Today FM and NewsTalk.