About the Awards is a new series of Q&As with our editors across ALM Media’s publications that aims to give readers and potential nominees insight into our judging process for awards related to ALM Recognition Events. We hope this will guide you as you draft your submissions, and we welcome any additional questions you may have.
For this column in our series, we’ll be discussing our California Legal Awards with bureau chief Alaina Lancaster, who will be leading the judging across all categories. For more information about the California Legal Awards 2022 contest, please visit the nomination post and the awards site. The deadline for submissions is July 14. You can also view other upcoming ALM contest submission deadlines and sign up for marketing notifications here.
Alaina, can you tell us more about yourself?
I am bureau chief for Law.com’s California-based brand The Recorder. I’ve headed up The Recorder for almost two years. I started out with ALM/Law.com as a litigation editor and reporter in April 2019. As bureau chief, I still write primarily about litigation, but I also have the opportunity to cover business of law, regulation and other topics. I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area a little more than four years ago from Chicago, where I worked as a reporter and editor covering labor and legislation for the restaurant, retail and foodservice industries. Yes, I still miss Chicago tavern-style pizza and encouraging the unindoctrinated to try Malort.
As for the professional excellence awards, is this a new contest?
It’s not new, but it is improved. After a hiatus during the last two years, we are back with some of our traditional award categories, such as Women Leaders in Tech Law. The category list also includes some new additions such as Lawyers on the Fast Track, which is an opportunity to spotlight the next generation of legal leaders under 40 years old.
Do attorneys need to practice in California to qualify?
These awards are for the California legal community, so entries should have a strong Golden State connection. For instance, the Tech Industry Advisory Team of the Year and Tech Industry Litigation Department of the Year categories are open to law firms of all sizes and locations, but the engagements’ lead or co-lead partner must be based in California.
How many nominations can a firm submit in each category?
Although we don’t have an official limit, we urge firms to use discretion in putting their best candidates forward in each category.
Will you accept confidential information?
Nope, consider it on the record.
Who should be interested in submitting nominations for this contest?
Please consider submitting nominations if you’re a lawyer, law firm, in-house attorney or legal professional seeking to spotlight legal work performed in California or by California-based attorneys.
So you’re saying any lawyer or firm can enter, even if they’re not on the Am Law 200?
Absolutely!
Who is judging this contest?
The Recorder’s editorial team will be judging the contest for the most part. This year, one of the categories, the “On the Radar” award, will be decided by data from Law.com Radar, which is a source for real-time updates on high stakes legal matters across more than 35 client industry sectors.
What are the judges looking for?
We include the descriptions for all the awards here. We’re really looking at the impact of the matters or individuals. In California, award entries that highlight emerging technologies, industries or legal issues will stand out in particular.
What do you want to see in submissions?
It’s important to lay out the details of the win or success, but it’s equally important to explain the impact. Was it a case of first impression? What is the scope of the impact? Why does it matter? What does this change?
The deadline for these awards is July 14, 2022.
For more information about the California Legal Awards and other Recognition Events awards, please contact Recognition Events desk manager Pearl Wu at [email protected].
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NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.