Who’s in the running for our top law awards?

With just three weeks to go until the winners of this year’s The Herald Law Awards of Scotland are announced, the list of finalists who are in the running for the profession’s most prestigious awards, have just been made public.

It includes law firms and professionals across all sectors of the law in Scotland, including criminal law, high street firms, in-house teams and real estate specialists.

Amongst those in contention are Melissa Rutherford of Rutherford Sheridan Ltd, Stuart Kenneth Munro of Livingstone Brown and Tracey Ginn of MBM Commercial LLP, who have all been shortlisted for Solicitor of the Year, sponsored by the Law Society of Scotland.

Jack Smith of Latta & Co, Matthew McGovern of McGovern Reid Court Lawyers and Louisa Doole of McSherry Halliday LLP have all been named as finalists for the Junior Solicitor of the Year, while Allan McDougall Solicitors, Anderson Strathern and MBM Commercial are all in the running for the title of Litigation Team of the Year, sponsored by Stirling Park Messengers-at-Arms and Sheriff Officers.

Other awards will go to Manager of the Year, In-House Team of the Year and Transactions Team of the Year, as well as an Outstanding Contribution Award, which will go to one individual who has made their mark on the profession.

In total there are almost 40 individuals, teams and companies on the shortlist, spread across 14 different awards, including the Special Judge’s Award, which will be announced on the night.

Ronnie Murison, Director of Sheriff Officer Services at Stirling Park Messengers-at-Arms and Sheriff Officers, said: “Congratulations to the firms and individuals that have been shortlisted across all categories, particularly for those nominated under Litigation Firm of the Year, which Stirling Park is sponsoring again this year.  The quality of entries has been extremely high, and we are looking forward to the evening of the Awards to see those that have been recognised for their achievements.”

Meena Bahanda, Head of Legal, Scotland IDEX Consulting, and also one of this year’s judges, said “As sponsors of  the Law Firm of the Year  and Law Firm of the Year – Scottish Independents, we are delighted by the entries to both categories to this years Herald Law Awards of Scotland. The entries demonstrated the quality of work being delivered in this challenging environment over the last few years and caused much debate amongst the judges and we look forward to congratulating the winners on the night.”

And Ken Dalling, President of the Law Society of Scotland said: “It’s a privilege to support a celebration of excellence across our profession. There is no doubt the past 18 months have been among the most challenging any of us have ever faced. I am proud of the innovation, hard work, collaboration and flexibility the profession has shown as it continues to deliver essential advice and representation for their clients and employers through this extraordinary period. We’re delighted to support the prestigious Scottish Solicitor of the Year Award again and to highlight the best examples of how new technologies and ways of working have been harnessed through our support this year of the Innovation Award.”

This new category has been created in order to recognise those firms or individuals who have found creative new ways of achieving the highest possible professional standards during the challenging times of the last 18 months.

And this year’s awards ceremony is innovative too, with the results being announced on-line on Thursday, November 18 followed by an awards winners dinner, which will take place on Thursday, November 25 when the winners will be presented with their trophies.

2021 Finalists:

Transactions Team of the Year

  • MacDonald Henderson
  • MBM Commercial
  • Shepherd and Wedderburn

 

High Street Firm of the Year

  • Livingstone Brown
  • McDougall McQueen
  • McSherry Halliday LLP
  • Neilsons Solicitors & Estate Agents

 

Criminal Law Firm of the Year

  • Keegan Smith Criminal Defence Lawyers
  • Livingstone Brown
  • Moir and Sweeney Litigation

 

Law Firm of the Year – Sponsored by IDEX Consulting

  • DLA Piper LLP
  • MBM Commercial LLP
  • Shoosmiths LLP

 

Law Firm of the Year – Scottish Independents – Sponsored by IDEX Consulting

  • Anderson Strathern
  • Jones Whyte LLP
  • Livingstone Brown

 

Junior Solicitor of the Year

  • Jack Smith – Latta & Co Solicitors
  • Matthew McGovern – McGovern Reid CourtLawyers
  • Louisa Doole – McSherry Halliday LLP

 

Solicitor of the Year – Sponsored by Law Society of Scotland

  • Melissa Rutherford – Rutherford Sheridan Ltd
  • Stuart Kenneth Munro – Livingstone Brown
  • Tracey Ginn – MBM Commercial LLP

 

Manager of the Year

  • Murray McCall – Anderson Strathern –
  • Mike Polson – Ashurst LLP
  • Stuart Munro – Livingstone Brown

 

In-House Team of the Year

  • Aberdeen City Council Legal Services
  • Idox Plc

 

Litigation Team of the Year – Sponsored by Stirling Park

  • Allan McDougall Solicitors
  • Anderson Strathern
  • MBM Commercial LLP

 

Real Estate Team of the Year

  • Anderson Strathern
  • Shoosmiths LLP

 

Innovation Award – Sponsored by Law Society of Scotland

  • Ashurst LLP
  • Hey Legal
  • McDougall McQueen

 

Outstanding Contribution Award

  • Edith Forrest – Scottish Bar
  • Mike Dailly – Govan Law Centre

Special Judge’s Award

  • TBA on the night