[New] NLS Awards Dinner 2022

Northamptonshire Law Society was delighted to be able to host a face to face celebration of its annual awards event. It was the first time since Covid that members of the Society, award nominees, patrons and local dignitaries were able to come together to celebrate the successes within Northamptonshire Law.

The ceremony was hosted by John Griff, whose professionalism, and humour ensured that the evening was enjoyable but remained on schedule.

The first award of the evening was the NLS Prize for Outstanding Academic Achievement (Best Undergraduate Dissertation)

All law students must write a dissertation in the final year of their LLB studies. The winner, Nele Klinkosch, chose to write her 10,000-word dissertation on the topic of medical professionals and asked should they be protected by immunity legislation in the UK. This work was set against the backdrop of Covid 19 and considered whether there was enough flexibility in the law to recognise the unprecedented strains on the medical profession. Nele’s well-argued and researched piece on this topical issue concluded that not only was immunity legislation unnecessary on a legal basis but research showed that it should be avoided. The academics who reviewed her dissertation commended her for the high quality of her research and her ability to develop and sustain an argument throughout the work.

Nele achieved the highest grade possible for her dissertation, the only student to do so this year. The Society agreed that she was the well-deserved winner of the Northamptonshire Law Society Dissertation prize. to ‘go the extra mile’ to support their team, excellent standards of work, dedication to their role, professional development and, contribution to client relationships and business development. This proved to be a challenging category for the judges to agree on, to the point whereby the decision had been argued and cross examined in true legal style, and the conclusion was that both shortlisted applications were deemed to be winners.

This category recognised the vital role support staff play in local community projects and also their involvement in pro bono work. Judges were looking for nominees who demonstrated their ability

Winners for NLS Support Staff 2022 sponsored by Blue Button Legal Indemnities were jointly Tracy Gilmartin - Shoosmiths and Wayne Jenkins - Wilson Browne.

(The award was collected on behalf of Tracy Gilmartin by Mrs Sharine Burgess)

YOUNG LAWYER of the yearThe Sarah Banner Award kindly sponsored by Shoosmiths, presented by Mrs Sharine Burgess

As in previous years this category attracted a large number of entries and proved very competitive with some extremely able and talented people making the shortlist. The awards gave an opportunity for the Society to celebrate some of the best young and rising talent in the county.

NLS Solicitor of the Year 2022(The Fiona Moore Prize) Sponsored by Wilson Browne, presented by Mrs Ika Castka

All the shortlisted nominees were very highly commended and as such to pick just one proved particularly difficult.

The Shortlist nominees

Sarah Franklin Hayley Mauro

were: barometer that this firm is not sacrificing client care on the altar of growth and financial success. I am pleased that as a local firm they are taking responsibility for the wider legal community: it’s always good to see that solicitors can get along with each other, albeit there will be times when the gloves have to come off!’

The winner was Alexandra Johnson. Alexandra demonstrated a sensitive approach to supporting clients in difficult circumstances. The judges noted that she had developed a wider role within the firm in relation to training, business development and pro bono and community work. Alexandra also supported the local community in an area of particular need, domestic abuse. The judges found that she was also a role model to the children through her work with the Brownies and contributed to diversity in the profession through her work in assisting students undertaking work experience in her firm.

The winner was Sara Franklin. Sara had developed a practice that had strong links to the business and cultural life of the county. As well as developing an expertise motorsport law, Sara also contributed more widely through membership of the Judicial Advisory Committee of Motorsport. Sara’s community engagement was regarded by the judges as innovative as it facilitated access to justice through providing basic legal information through social media.

Northamptonshire Law Society

Small Firm of the Year– sponsored by Archways Real Estate presented by

The Society wanted to encourage firms of all sizes to participate as it recognised the sterling work that the smaller niche firms deliver within the sector.

The shortlist of nominees was: Sarah Franklin Solicitors

Aardvark Planning Law

Large Law Firm of the Year -

Sponsored by Landmark Information group, presented by Leon Houseman

This category has always proved to be a fiercely fought sector, and this year proved to be no different with the following shortlisted nominees:

Shoosmiths

Wilson Browne

Family Law Group

This year’s winner was Wilson Browne, one judge commented, ‘What struck me about this nominee was their client appreciation. Feedback is very impressive and a good

The winner was Aardvark Planning Law who have successfully established themselves in a specialist area of practice, supporting local businesses while developing a national client base. The judges felt that of particular note was their emphasis on encouraging a diverse profession through offering work placements and career development to a range of aspiring lawyers.