Scottish Legal Awards - Teamwork

More news on the Scottish Legal Awards ... but who wants an award from DM Hall with their record ?

The Scotsman reports ;

Teamwork is the name of the game in five of the Scottish Legal Awards

PETER RANSCOMBE

AS THE Royal Navy say, "the team works", and the 2008 Cuthbert Scottish Legal Awards will be highlighting the hard work of teams throughout the Scottish legal profession.

Five awards will recognise the contributions that teams have made in the fields of residential property, commercial property, private client work, corporate services and to projects.

The awards, which are now in their sixth successful year, are sponsored by Bank of Scotland Corporate and have The Scotsman as their media partner.

Entries are judged by a panel of experts from across the profession and beyond, chaired by Margo MacDonald, the independent list MSP for the Lothians.

The prizes will be presented at a gala ceremony and lunch in Glasgow's Hilton Hotel on Friday 22 February, 2008.

Firms have until the deadline on Wednesday 28 November to submit their entries to the competition's 15 categories.

Rebecca Davies, the director of the Cuthbert Scottish Legal Awards, said: "Team awards are vital, a great motivator and an important boost that can improve productivity.

"There's no doubt that lawyers work exceptionally hard so this is their chance to reward themselves and their clients for a job well done."

The Balvenie Private Client Team of the Year Award seeks to recognise a team "demonstrating an exceptional year of activity in 2007 coupled with evidence of a productivity, client care, and market reputation".

The prize is a new award in the 2008 contest.

The judges say they are looking for nominations from "market-leading firms demonstrating excellence in client care, great results and a growing business portfolio" in the categories for both the residential and commercial property team.

The ESPC Residential Firm or Property Team of the Year and the DM Hall Commercial Property Team of the Year awards will recognise such solicitors.

Murray Beith Murray took the residential title last year, while Harper Macleod carried off the commercial crown.

The other two group categories are the Sound & Vision Project Team of the Year Award and the Bank of Scotland Corporate Corporate Team of the Year.

Last year the Property Standardisation Group won the project team category.

The awards programme was launched back in September, at the Balvenie Live Legal Debates, held at The Scotsman's headquarters in Edinburgh and at the Lighthouse, in Glasgow.

As well as rewarding excellence, the awards programme is also aiming to raise £10,000 for Children 1st, Scotland's leading charity for children's welfare.

Judges joining the panel this year include: Geraldine Gammell, chief executive of the Prince's Trust Scotland; Michael Lugton, chief executive of the Scottish Law Commission; Professor Tom Mullen, head of law at Glasgow University; Alastair Northrop, editor of Scottish Business Insider; Robert Pirrie, chief executive of the WS Society; and Valerie Stacey QC, the Faculty of Advocates' vice-dean.

• For more details about how to enter the 2008 Cuthbert Scottish Legal Awards, log on to http://www.thescottishlegalawards.com or call KDMedia on 0131-624 9840.