By Business & Finance 
Mark Tottenham is a barrister, publisher, author, and podcaster. He is the founder of Decisis, an online law reporting service and one of the founders of the inaugural Kilkenny Law Festival, which will take place on 16-18 May 2025.
What was your first job?
My first full-time job was production controller at Hodder & Stoughton publishers in London. All my friends seemed to associate them with the Asterix books, but I was working in the medical and academic division, called Edward Arnold.
I did a number of jobs in my 20s, including working for a charity in India, and as a genealogical researcher. But I had always aspired to go to the Bar, and I studied law in the evenings for four years, qualifying when I was 32.
What pushed you to pursue a career in this field?
My first degree was in history, which didn’t naturally lead to any particular career, but I always found legal issues interesting. I think a legal training is useful in problem solving. I also liked the idea of working for myself, which is a particular feature of the Bar in Ireland.
Despite working as a barrister I remained interested in publishing, and started my online legal publishing company, Decisis Law Reports, in 2011.
What would you regard as your greatest achievement to date?
Bringing the craft of law-reporting kicking and screaming into the 21st century! Decisis Law Reports saves its users a huge amount of time (and therefore money) in legal research.
It is used by most of the large solicitors’ firms in Ireland, as well as university law departments, and the main government bodies working on issues relating to justice and the courts. A lot of professional bodies rely on it to keep up to date with relevant developments.
Career-wise, would you do anything differently?
I would have liked to have do some postgraduate study abroad, as I think it is a good opportunity to get to know people from other countries. But I have lived in the UK, India, Brussels, and Frankfurt, and travelled quite widely elsewhere, so I have nothing to complain about.
In one sentence, how would you define success?
Getting positive feedback from clients and customers who have appreciated and benefited from the service they have received.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
When a new piece of work arrives, start work on it straight away.
How do you motivate yourself and your team?
I work with a number of business partners on a number of projects. Vincent Walshe and Mim O’Flynn work with me on Decisis Law Reports. I’m working with Naoise Nunn and Enda Leahy on the Kilkenny Law Festival, which will launch next month. I work with Peter Leonard and Conall Ó Moráin on the Fifth Court podcast. I’m working with Tim Ryan on Nealon’s Guide to the Oireachtas. And I’m now working with Eavanna Fitzgerald and her team on The Expert Witness Site. So I don’t have a team of my own as such, but I try to contribute more than my fair share on any project I work on.
What is your approach to overcoming challenges?
When a new piece of work arrives, start work on it straight away! Try not to let it build up in your mind as something to fear.
How do you relax?
I’m lucky to live near the sea, and I swim all year round. We spend a lot of time in Co. Wicklow with my mother, and we have a small house near my parents-in-law in the Donegal Gaeltacht, which we love. My children keep me distracted from work problems.
What are your aspirations for the future of your business?
I hope that legal professionals in Ireland will continue to recognise the value that Decisis Law Reports will bring to their work, in terms of saving time and money. I also hope that our law-reporting model will be recognised as a standard in other jurisdictions.
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