Yorkshire legal profession celebrates at virtual awards ceremony

A host of law firms and solicitors were recognised as the Yorkshire legal profession’s best and brightest at the virtual Yorkshire Legal Awards 2020 last night.

Stewarts, Howard & Byrne, Clarion and FTA Law were among the winners announced during the virtual ceremony on yorkshirelegalnews.co.uk, where the profession celebrated the successes of the past 12 months and its dedication to serving and supporting clients during these difficult times.

Stewarts took home the Large Law Firm Award. Described by the judges as a great firm that is bringing London quality work to Leeds, this specialist firm is excelling in a number of litigation areas, including catastrophic injury, matrimoney and commercial law.

Stewarts is also a leader in delivering pro bono legal advice in Yorkshire.

Howard & Byrne had a superb evening, winning the Small Law Firm Award and the Criminal Law Award.

The firm is a dedicated supporter of promoting the profession internally and externally, by investing in the careers of its own members of staff and flying the flag for criminal justice. This firm is always giving back in both Yorkshire and internationally.

Clarion won Medium Law Firm Award, with the judges describing the firm as very much a local success story, while FTA Law impressed in a fiercely competitive category, reflecting the increasing excellence of boutique law firms in Yorkshire.

Among the multiple award winners were Schofield Sweeney, which took home the Commercial Property Award and the Litigation & Dispute Resolution Award. The judges said this firm has gone from strength to strength over the past few years.

Of the individuals to be recognised at this year’s Yorkshire Legal Awards, Emma Permaine of Ridley & Hall was named Managing Partner of the Year.

Permaine was singled out as the leader of a local Yorkshire firm who has worked hard to look after staff since the outbreak of Covid-19. She is a real champion for women in the legal profession and the judges were pleased to be able to recognise her achievements with an award.

The Managing Partner of the Year win capped an excellent night for Ridley & Hall, which also took home the Family Law Award for doing great work across the board.

Trainee Solicitor of the Year, recognising the hard work and commitment required to excel in law, went to Danny Jacobson of Hawkswell Kilvington, who stood out as resourceful, down to earth and an asset to his firm.

The most prestigious award of the night, Yorkshire Lawyer of the Year, went to David Barraclough, who has just joined the governing council of the Law Society of England and Wales.

The judges said that the immediate past president of the Yorkshire Union of Law Societies is a practitioner who, although retired, continues to contribute much to the profession in Leeds and Yorkshire.

Barraclough is a role model for the entire profession, a thoroughly welcoming and approachable person, and a committed fundraiser for a range of causes, including access to justice.

In his speech during the virtual Yorkshire Legal Awards, Nicholas Emmerson, president of Leeds Law Society and chair of the independent judging panel, praised the entrants, finalists and winners for setting such a high standard.

He said: “Every single entry revealed that the state of the legal profession in Yorkshire is clearly strong and demonstrably resilient in these extraordinary times. Thank you to the members of the judging panel who surrendered their time to work with me to assess every entry.”

While individuals and businesses continue to adapt to the new normal, find out what the independent judging panel had to say about each and every winner at this year’s Yorkshire Legal Awards.

Next year’s Yorkshire Legal Awards will return to New Dock Hall in Leeds on 7 October 2021. Stay tuned for entry details and news of other exciting events dedicated to the legal profession in the region.