Northumbria University scoops top prize at Law Society Awards

Northumbria’s Student Law Office was the overall winner in the category of ‘Excellence in Community Investment’, which recognises best practice and innovation in community investment including fundraising and charitable giving, pro-bono and non-legal volunteering.

The nomination was based on the huge amount of staff and student time devoted to offering a free legal service for the community as part of its Student Law Office clinical legal education programmes.  Students under close supervision of qualified lawyers advise and represent hundreds of clients each year across a wide range of legal issues including: housing, employment, family, welfare, crime, civil litigation, environment and business.
 
The judges were impressed by the scale and sustainability of Northumbria's projects which involve more than 20 lawyers and 170 students each year. Last year more than 50,000 hours of staff and student time were devoted to the provision of a highly professional, free of charge service in North East England and beyond.

Kevin Kerrigan, Acting Dean of the Law School, said, "The competition for this award was daunting including major international law firms, Freshfield Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, Hogan Lovells LLP and Simmons & Simmons LLP. That the Law School can not only compete but succeed against such esteemed institutions is testament to the ambition of this project and the commitment of everyone involved’.

Click here to view the full list of award winners.