Nominations are now being invited for this year’s The Herald Law Awards of Scotland taking place in November, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a very special host: TV’s Rob Rinder.
This year marks the 20th significant anniversary for The Herald Law Awards for Scotland. Over the course of two decades these prestigious awards have sought out exceptional talent, celebrated the highest standards of professionalism and recognised the exceptional work being carried out within Scotland’s legal sector.
That commitment to highlighting the best and brightest within the profession will continue again this year when the host for the landmark awards ceremony will be Rob Rinder, whose media appearances have broken down barriers and increased understanding of how the law affects individuals.
From the eponymous series, Judge Rinder, for ITV, to Raising the Bar on BBC5Live, and recently The Princes in the Tower: The New Evidence, or Britain Behind Bars on Channel 4, Rob Rinder has enriched the media landscape with his knowledge and experience.
This barrister-turned broadcaster, who also has an MBE for services to Holocaust education and whose novels ‘The Trial’ and ‘The Suspect’ are based on his experiences at the Bar, will bring a fresh dimension to the event, which will take place on Friday, 15 November in Glasgow’s Marriott Hotel.
The awards are now open and candidates have until Tuesday, 10 September to submit their entries.
This year there are 17 categories including High Street Firm of the Year, Criminal Law Firm of the Year and Family and Child Law Firm of the Year.
The Up and Coming Award is open to solicitors with up to seven years of post-qualification experience who can provide evidence of the impact of their work on clients, colleagues and employers while in the Paralegal of the Year category the judges will be looking for evidence of skills, innovation and achievements.
Over the years the Rising Star at the Scottish Bar category has proved to be an accurate predictor of outstanding talent and once again the judges will be looking for an advocate with seven years experience or less, whose flair and achievements are making them a stand-out presence in the profession, while the Solicitor of the Year award, sponsored by Law Society of Scotland, will reward an individual with outstanding legal skills.
Other returning categories include Litigation Team of the Year and Debt Recovery Team of the Year both sponsored by Stirling Park, and Employment and Pensions Team of the Year.
Ronnie Murison, Director of Sheriff Officer Services, said: “Stirling Park has supported the Law Awards since it started 20 years ago and this year we are celebrating our centenary, so we are delighted to be involved again this year by sponsoring the Debt Recovery and Litigation team categories. We provide sheriff officer services to many law firms throughout Scotland in these categories, and we appreciate the skillset and legal knowledge required in this sector, so it is rewarding to recognise the successful candidates that have been nominated. We are looking forward to the event on Friday 15th November, and delighted that Rob Rinder will be hosting.”
There is an award too for In-House Lawyer of the Year while the Innovation Award, once again sponsored by Law Society of Scotland, is open to any individual, firm, faculty, in-house team or legal society or organisation that can demonstrate how they have improved the practice of law using new techniques.
Entries are also sought across the same field for both this year’s CSR and Pro Bono Awards, which seek to recognise how the skills and experience of the legal profession can be put to a greater good.
Amongst the most sought-after titles of the evening will once again be Law Firm of the Year and Law Firm of the Year – Scottish Independents – both sponsored by IDEX Consulting, while the Outstanding Contribution Award, which is decided upon by the judges themselves, will pay tribute to an individual in law who has made an outstanding contribution to the development of the Scottish legal profession.
The awards are now open and candidates have until Tuesday, 10 September to submit their entries and tickets are available for the 20th anniversary celebration on Friday, November 15th, with drinks reception kindly sponsored by formalwear partner Suited and Booted Glasgow.
Full details of the awards, along with online entry forms are available at https://newsquestscotlandevents.com/events/lawawards/