National law firm Freeths, city-based Barcan+Kirby and Bristol heavyweights Burges Salmon and Osborne Clarke were among the winners at last night’s 2023 Bristol Law Society Awards.
Freeths landed the title of Law Firm of the Year (over 20 partners), beating Ashfords, which was highly commended, Foot Anstey and Osborne Clarke, while Barcan+Kirby beat The Family Law Practice in the Law Firm of the Year (under 20 partners) category.
Osborne Clarke took home the Sustainable Business of the Year trophy with Burges Salmon named Diversity, Inclusion and Wellbeing Champion of the Year at the flagship black-tie event.
More than 430 people attended the dinner and awards ceremony at the Delta Hotels by Marriott Bristol City Centre with £6,140 raised for Bristol Law Society charity of the year Somerset and Avon Rape and Sexual Abuse Support (SARSAS) on the night.
The President’s Outstanding Achievement Award went to TLT partner Andrew Glynn, with the firm’s Kay Hobbs winning Lawyer of the Year – a category in which Jackie Linehan, legal director of Enable Law, was highly commended Lawyer.
Other winners included Mia Clothier of Osborne Clarke, who was awarded the Law Student of the Year Award, with Victoria Williams of Weston College highly commended.
Support Team Member of the Year went to Dawn Goodman, practice manager at The Family Law Practice, and Pro Bono Lawyer of the Year: Emily Hooper, a paralegal at Simmons & Simmons.
Junior Lawyer of the Year was Mamunul Wahid, an associate in the financial services litigation team based in Clarke Willmott’s Bristol office.
Legal Innovator of the Year went to the Retail & Consumer Sector Team at Foot Anstey. Chambers of the Year was Albion Chambers while St John’s Chambers earned the Team of the Year Award, with Bath Law Clinic highly commended in the category.
The Community Engagement Award of the Year went to Wards Solicitors.
Andrew Glynn specialises in commercial property investment and asset management/transaction support for corporate clients.
He qualified as a solicitor with TLT in 1985 and then worked for seven years in London, principally with City practice Rowe and Maw (now Mayer Brown). He returned to TLT in 1992, became a partner two years later and head of Real Estate from 1999-2015. In 2016 he became TLT’s senior partner.
A council member and past chairman of the Association of Property and Fixed Charge Receivers (NARA), he is independently recognised as an expert in the field of real estate by legal directory Chambers UK.
See next week’s Bristol Business News e-bulletin for photos of all the winners.
