The Ministry of Justice is inviting nominations for the award of King’s Counsel Honoris Causa. The nomination window is open now and will close on 18th September.
To be eligible for the award, the individual must be a qualified lawyer or legal academic, including licensed conveyancers, solicitors and chartered legal executives.
The honorary award is unique to the law and legal profession and granted under the royal prerogative. “It is a dedicated opportunity to recognise lawyers and legal academics who have made a major contribution to, and impact on, the law of England and Wales or the legal profession outside the courtroom”, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said.
The award is not a working rank and is separate from substantive KC appointments administered by King’s Counsel Appointments, which recognise excellence in advocacy in the higher courts.
It is made for a significant, positive impact either on the shape of the law of England and Wales, or on the legal profession, for work outside the courtroom.
The criterion can be interpreted broadly, the MoJ explained, either as a major contribution to the development of the law of England and Wales (for example, by dedicated research, influencing case law or legislation and promoting initiatives), or to how it is advanced
(such as positively impacting the shape of the profession).
Professor Martin Dixon (right), a legal academic specialising in property law, is a recipient of a previous award. He was nominated for being one of the leading academic authorities on property law in England and Wales, with scholarship widely cited by the senior courts, including the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court.
The nomination also highlighted his co-authorship of leading practitioner texts, participation in Law Commission projects, co-leadership of the Modern Studies in Property Law conference, and editorship of The Conveyancer.
