Legal industry honours high fliers
Friday, 27th March 2009
The best of Birmingham and the West Midlands' legal talent was on show last week at the Birmingham Law Society Legal Awards.
Hundreds of guests gathered at the ICC for the annual event to find out who would be crowned winners of the awards and who would be going home empty handed.
Top honours went to Anthony Collins Solicitors, which managed to pick up three awards on the night thanks to Alexandra Loxton, who won Legal Executive of the Year; Gemma Bell, who was awarded the Trainee Solicitor of the Year title; and Peter Hubbard, who was named Commercial Solicitor of the Year.
The firm was also shortlisted in three other categories, including Law Firm of the Year (16 partners or more), but failed to convert the nominations into actual awards.
Instead, Martineau was given the nod in the Law Firm of the Year (16 partners or more) category, beating Birmingham City Council Legal Services, Irwin Mitchell and Mills & Reeve, as well as Anthony Collins.
Law Firm of the Year (15 partners or fewer) was won by a newcomer to the category, The John Hughes Law Practice.
Other winners on the night included Peter Davies from HBJ Gateley Wareing, who won Law Firm Manager of the Year; Gurjit Atwal from Eversheds, Solicitor of the Year; and Jacob Robinson from HBJ Gateley Wareing, who was crowned Assistant Solicitor of the Year.
Barrister of the Year was awarded to Christopher Bright of No5 Chambers. It was a double celebration for Christopher, who was sworn in as a QC on 30 March.
Caroline Coates, president of Birmingham Law Society, said: ''Despite the challenges faced by the legal sector, this year's Legal Awards demonstrate that even in the face of adverse economic conditions there are still individual and collaborative tales of success to be told.
''It is during times like these that true talent really shines through and this year the judges had a challenging time selecting the winners from the list of outstanding finalists. As president of Birmingham Law Society and a member of the judging panel it was satisfying to see just how much exemplary legal work is being carried out in the city and throughout the West Midlands.
''My congratulations go out to all the winners; they truly are a credit to the sector.''
Around 400 people attended this year's Legal Awards, which were hosted by local TV personality Llewela Bailey. The guest speaker on the night was former leader of the Liberal Democrat Party, Charles Kennedy MP.
Sponsors included Jaguar UK, 3Sixty Systems, Baker Tilly, Bank of Cyprus, Chiltern Railways, The College of Law, DX Group, Giles Insurance Brokers, Landmark Information Group, Severn Trent Searches and St Philips Chambers.
Money raised on the night from a charity raffle was donated to Fairbridge, which helps provide support for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.
