Guide
Legal awards, scholarships and writing prizes
Recognition and funding are easier to pursue when you know what exists. This guide sets out the profession's standing awards, scholarships, grants and essay prizes, with who runs each and who can enter. Dates change every year, so each entry links to the page that carries them.
On this page
Before you enter anything
The rules differ from one program to the next. Four of them decide whether a nomination can succeed at all, so check them first.
- Who nominates. Many programs accept self-nomination, including the Mahla Pearlman Award, the Australian Human Rights Awards, the Law Society of New South Wales member awards and the Law Society of Western Australia's Annual Awards. Others refuse it: the Law Society of South Australia's Emerging Lawyer of the Year Award and the WLAQ Annual Awards both need someone else to nominate you. The LIV asks that its nominees not be told.
- Membership. Nominees for the Law Society of New South Wales awards must be members. In South Australia both the nominee and the nominator for the emerging lawyer award must be Society members. In Western Australia neither needs to be.
- What "young" means. There is no common definition. Current rules use under 35, under 36, less than five years since admission, the first seven years of practice, and ten years or less post-qualification.
- How often. Most programs are annual. The Australian Women Lawyers Award, the NSW Women Lawyers Achievement Awards, the Victorian Bar Pro Bono Awards and the AIAL National Essay Prize run every two years.
Awards run by the profession's own bodies
Start with the body you belong to. The national awards sit with the Law Council of Australia and its Sections; each state society and several associations run their own.
| Award | Run by | Who it is for | How to enter |
|---|---|---|---|
| President's Award | Law Council of Australia | An Australian lawyer of good standing who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession | See the Law Council's page |
| Australian Young Lawyer Awards | Law Council's Young Lawyers' Committee | Two annual categories: a young or early career lawyer, and a young lawyer organisation | A nomination form for each category |
| Mahla Pearlman Award for the Australian Young Environmental Lawyer of the Year | Law Council's Australian Environment and Planning Law Group | Practitioners in any Australian jurisdiction, or environmental law academics, under 35 at a date set each round | A letter addressing the criteria; self-nomination accepted |
| Victorian Young Property Lawyer of the Year Award | Law Council's Australian Property Law Group, supported by the LIV | Under 36, holding a current Victorian practising certificate, practising predominantly in property law | Nomination form with CV, criteria statement and two references |
| LIV Legal Awards | Law Institute of Victoria | Four Board awards for members: Honorary Life Membership, Distinguished Service Award, President's Award for Outstanding Service and Emerging Lawyer Award. The Stephen Myall Award and Paul Baker Award are open to non-members | LIV nomination forms or written nomination |
| President's Medal and Annual Members Awards | The Law Society of New South Wales | Members. The President's Medal, plus Committee Member of the Year, Pro Bono Service, Wellbeing and Sustainable Practice, Early Career Lawyer of the Year and Professional Leadership awards | Online nomination; self-nomination accepted with referees |
| QLS Excellence in Law Awards | Queensland Law Society | Twelve categories covering solicitors by firm size, emerging leaders, graduates and students, in-house and regional practice, pro bono, access to justice and inclusion | Nomination |
| Law Society Annual Awards | The Law Society of Western Australia | Emerging Lawyer, Legal Innovation, Regional Practitioner, In-house Counsel, Government Lawyer and Lawyer of the Year | Nomination or self-nomination |
| Emerging Lawyer of the Year Award | The Law Society of South Australia | Members admitted in South Australia who are under 35 or admitted for five years or less | Online nomination by a Society member, with two referees |
| Victorian Bar Pro Bono Awards | Victorian Bar | Barristers who have made an outstanding contribution acting pro bono; held every two years, next in 2027 | Nomination |
| Australian Corporate Lawyer Awards | ACC Australia | In-house lawyers in corporate, government and not-for-profit teams | Nomination or self-nomination |
| Australian Women Lawyers Award | Australian Women Lawyers | Women who have given long-term leadership in advancing women in the profession | Nominations open every two years |
| Women Lawyers Achievement Awards | Women Lawyers Association of NSW | Nine categories across solicitors, barristers, government, in-house, regional practice, academia and law firms; held every two years | See the Association's page |
| WLAQ Annual Awards | Women Lawyers Association of Queensland | Women with a law degree working in law in Queensland: Woman Lawyer, Regional Woman Lawyer and Emergent Woman Lawyer of the Year | Nomination by anyone other than the nominee |
| Woman Lawyer Awards | Women Lawyers of Western Australia | Woman Lawyer, Junior Woman Lawyer and Rural, Regional and Remote Woman Lawyer of the Year, and the Antoinette Kennedy Award; announced at the Honours Dinner in March, though not always presented each year | Nomination form |
| Civil Justice Awards and Member of the Year Award | Australian Lawyers Alliance | People and organisations who have contributed to civil justice, nationally and in particular states and territories; the Member of the Year Award is for ALA members | Nomination through the ALA |
| Australian Human Rights Awards | Australian Human Rights Commission | Australian citizens, residents living in Australia and Australian-registered organisations. Five categories, including a Law award | Nomination; self-nomination accepted |
| Resolution Institute Certificate Awards | Resolution Institute | Dispute resolution practitioners: emerging practitioner, exceptional practice, innovation in practice, and service to dispute resolution | Two separate nominators for each nominee |
| AILA Insurance Law Prize | Australian Insurance Law Association | A person who has made a substantial contribution to the insurance industry or insurance law | See AILA's page |
The Law Council's awards page lists fourteen programs in all. Beyond those above, they are the Baxt Prize, Consumer Rights Award, Eminent Environmental Lawyer Award for Excellence, Migration Manager John Gibson AM Award for the Young Australian Migration Lawyer of the Year, Outstanding Contribution Immigration Law Award, New Superannuation Lawyer Award, Tom Yuncken Australian Young Construction and Infrastructure Lawyer Award, Young Federal Litigation Lawyer of the Year Award and the National Golden Gavel speaking competition.
The Law Society of South Australia's awards page lists eleven honours: the Law Society Medal of Meritorious Service, President's Medal, Outstanding First Nations Law Student Award, First Nations Lawyer Award, Mary Kitson Award, Justice Award, Emerging Lawyer of the Year Award, Regional Practitioner of the Year Award, Pro Bono Award, The Bulletin Awards and Honorary Membership.
Awards run by publishers and industry
These programs sit outside the professional bodies. Lawyers Weekly runs five legal awards programs: the Australian Law Awards, 30 Under 30 Awards, Women in Law Awards, Partner of the Year Awards and Corporate Counsel Awards. They are entered by written submission and presented at a ticketed ceremony. The ALPMA Awards recognise firms in four categories: Excellence in People, Excellence in Technology and Innovation, Excellence in Business Success and Excellence in External Impact Initiatives.
Scholarships and fellowships
Some of these fund study overseas in any field; others are built for lawyers at a particular stage.
| Scholarship | Run by | Who can apply | What it funds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Churchill Fellowship | Winston Churchill Memorial Trust | Australian citizens and permanent residents; no qualification needed; any topic | Overseas travel to study your topic and bring the knowledge home |
| John Monash Scholarship | General Sir John Monash Foundation | Australian citizens with an undergraduate degree from an Australian university | Full-time master's or PhD study overseas. Applications open in May and close at the end of June |
| Fulbright Scholarships | Australian-American Fulbright Commission | Australian citizens living in Australia, in Postgraduate, Postdoctoral, Scholar and Distinguished Chair categories | Study or research in the United States. Applications open February to July |
| Rhodes Scholarships for Australia | Rhodes Trust | Applicants through their state or territory committee | Postgraduate study at Oxford |
| BFSLA John Stumbles Scholarship | Banking and Financial Services Law Association | Law graduates of Australian and New Zealand universities | Postgraduate study overseas in banking, finance or insolvency law |
| Regulatory Reform Fellowship | Law Council's Business Law Section | Lawyers with two to ten years' post-admission experience; not full-time academics or students | A practice-based research project on business law or regulation |
| John Koowarta Reconciliation Law Scholarship | Law Council of Australia | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in the penultimate or final year of a law degree | Offered each year; email the Law Council to be told when the next round opens |
| First Nations Scholarship | Australian Academy of Law | First Nations final-year law students, nominated by their Law Dean | Support in the final year of study |
| LIV Indigenous Scholarships | Law Institute of Victoria | First Nations graduates and lawyers | Practical legal training fees, or the Accredited Specialisation assessment fee |
| Accredited Specialisation scholarships | Law Institute of Victoria | Community legal centre employees, sole practitioners and lawyers at firms with fewer than five staff, and First Nations lawyers | The assessment application fee; offered annually |
| Indigenous Barristers' Trust The Mum Shirl Fund | Administered through the New South Wales Bar Association | First Nations law students and lawyers heading to the NSW Bar | Support through the Bar exam, the Bar Readers program and the first five years of practice |
| Indigenous barristers and law students programs | Victorian Bar | Indigenous law students, lawyers and barristers in Victoria | A waived Bar Readers' Course fee, a paid clerkship program each February or March, mentoring, subsidised chambers and the Indigenous Barristers' Trust |
Students have further options. The Law Society of New South Wales runs a Student Awards Program for student members who top their professional conduct subject. The Law Society of South Australia lists its prizes and scholarships, including a First Nations GDLP Scholarship and Paid Placement.
Grants for legal projects
If you are funding a project and not a person, these are the places to look.
| Funder | What it funds |
|---|---|
| Victoria Law Foundation | Civil legal and access to justice projects in Victoria, through a Major Grant and an Everyday Legal Grant |
| Victorian Legal Services Board + Commissioner | Access to justice projects, funded from the Public Purpose Fund in annual rounds |
| The Law Foundation of South Australia Incorporated | Legal research and law reform, practitioner education, community legal education and legal services. Grant applications close on 31 March and 30 September; fellowship applications on 30 September |
| Australian Academy of Law Research Grants | Legal research by students, academics, practitioners or judicial officers working at or through an Australian university |
| Society of Construction Law Australia Scholarship Support Fund | Research within the Society's objects. Submissions close on 30 April and 31 October |
| GrantConnect | The Australian Government's grants information system: forecast and current opportunities, and grants awarded |
Writing and essay prizes
Several of these are open to practitioners as well as students, so read the eligibility column closely.
| Prize | Run by | Who can enter |
|---|---|---|
| William Gummow Essay Prize | Australian Academy of Law | Anyone, wherever resident, who studies or has studied law at tertiary level, or works or has worked in a law-based occupation. A new topic is announced in the first half of each year |
| Sir Anthony Mason Constitutional Law Essay Competition | The Law Society of New South Wales, with NSW Young Lawyers | Undergraduate and Juris Doctor students; an annual short essay on one of the set questions |
| Brooking Prize | Society of Construction Law Australia | Authors of an essay on construction law, with a separate student prize. Entries close on the last Friday in September each year |
| Research Essay Prize | Banking and Financial Services Law Association | See the Association's page for each year's competition |
| The John McLaren Emmerson QC Essay Prize | Intellectual Property Society of Australia and New Zealand | See the Society's page for the current rules; prizes are presented at its annual conference |
| National Essay Prize in Administrative Law | Australian Institute of Administrative Law | Awarded every two years; winning essays are published in AIAL Forum |
| Morella Calder Memorial Prize | Maritime Law Association of Australia and New Zealand | Offered to universities and tertiary colleges teaching maritime law in Australia and New Zealand |
Two Law Council awards are also won on a piece of writing: the Baxt Prize, for a published journal article by an author under 35, and the New Superannuation Lawyer Award, for a paper on a set theme.
Journals and law reform bodies also take submissions all year. Those are listed on the Opportunity Board under Ongoing.
Keeping track
The Opportunity Board carries each of these with its estimated window and a Watch function that sends a reminder when the round opens.
Listings in the Atlas are editorial. Placement and order are never purchasable.
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