Will you mark the millennium by winning or nominating the winner for thisprestigious Award?
Since its inception in 1989 over 250 organisations have been nominated forthe award and a record entry is expected in this 25th Anniversary year of theSociety. Each year the profile of the Society’s Award for the most outstandingapplication of Information Technology to the Law, increases along with thelevels of excitement it generates in the profession.
There will be a new trophy to mark the 25th Anniversary. This trophy will beengraved with the winning organisation’s name and will appear on the frontpage of the SCL Web site with a link to the winner’s own Web site until theend of 2000.
Nominations will be judged by a panel chaired by Ed Dean, Head of Technology,Lovell White Durrant. The members of the panel are Michael Chambers (Editor,Commercial Lawyer), Matthew di Rienzo (Online Services Research and DevelopmentManager, Clifford Chance), Andrew Levison (Head of Information SystemsConsultancy and Partner, Grant Thornton), John Howells (IT Manager, S J Berwin& Co), Sarah Richardson (Barrister, Enterprise Chambers, Leeds) and MarkSlade (Partner, Fidler & Pepper).
The 2000 Award Trophy and certificates will be presented by the Lord ChiefJustice on Monday 24 January 2000 at The Law Society’s Hall. All the finalistswill be invited to this event where they will have an exceptional opportunity toshowcase their systems in front of some of the most influential figures in thelegal system industry.
As former Award Winner Barry Hawley-Green, MD of Laserform International,said ‘The value we have obtained from winning the SCL award twice cannot beunderestimated. All legal IT professionals are aware that it is the major awardand as such it has ensured that Laserform are recognised as a respected supplierof innovative software to the legal marketplace. It really helps open doors toour salespeople’. His sentiments were echoed by the 1999 Award winner BrianBarrett, Direct Access Manager at the Land Registry who said: ‘ … thisprestigious award is widely recognised as the legal profession’s benchmark foridentifying high quality innovation for the use of IT in law. As a past winner,we are permitted to use the SCL’s striking logo on our publicity material andhave done so to really good effect. The spin-off in terms of raising ourmarketing profile has been simply astonishing’.
Over the years a wide variety of organisations have won this Award and NickSaunders, Managing Partner of the 1997 winner Rundle Walker, said: ‘Winningthe 1997 Award gave us a clear market advantage: although only a medium-sizefirm, Rundle Walker gained great credibility both with our clients, ourprospective clients and in the profession, and we have subsequently gone fromstrength to strength’.
