Pro Bono Awards Nomination Form

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2023 Pro Bono Awards Nomination Form

The Victorian Bar has a proud culture and tradition of providing pro bono assistance. Nominating an individual, or a team, is a terrific way to acknowledge the value that members of Bar bring to the community in undertaking pro bono work.

The next Pro Bono Awards ceremony is scheduled for March 2023. Usually, the call for nominations occurs for a limited period before the ceremony. However, nominations for the 2023 awards are now open from August 2021 to November 2022 – this will enable you to immediately recognise members' outstanding pro bono activities by submitting a nomination as they occur.

Please use this form to make your nomination. Enter your details, and can you check the box if you would like your nomination to remain confidential. You may nominate an individual or a team in as many award categories as is appropriate. You will need to provide an explanation in support of your nomination. If you wish to nominate more than one person for the same award, please include all names in your response. You can make multiple separate submissions.

This form is designed to help you provide relevant information to assist the Committee in considering nominations. While it is not mandatory to respond to all questions, the Committee asks that you include as much information as you can so that Committee members can assess your nomination.

The Victorian Bar Pro Bono Committee thanks you for your time in completing the nomination.

The award categories for the Victorian Bar Pro Bono Awards are:

Victorian Bar Pro Bono Trophy – For outstanding individual achievement in pro bono advocacy over a long period.
Daniel Pollak Readers Award – For pro bono advocacy undertaken by barristers who have completed their Readers' Course within the previous two years.
Ron Castan AM QC Award – For pro bono advocacy undertaken by barristers who are between two and six years' call.
Susan Crennan AC QC Award – For pro bono advocacy undertaken by barristers who are between seven and 15-years' call but are not Silks.
Ron Merkel QC Award – For pro bono advocacy undertaken by barristers who are more than 15 years' call or Silks.
Public Interest/Justice Innovation Award – For outstanding achievement in pro bono advocacy which has a strong public interest element or has involved a procedural or substantive innovation in the law likely to enhance access to justice.
Debbie Mortimer S.C. Award – For outstanding achievement in pro bono advocacy in a Tribunal or the Magistrates' Court.
Uncle Jim Berg Award – For outstanding achievement in pro bono advice or advocacy that enhances access to justice for First Nations clients either nationally or in Victoria.
Equality Award – For outstanding achievement in pro bono advocacy that furthers the rights or interests of a disadvantaged and/or minority group. This includes racial or religious minorities, homeless people, people with a disability, refugees, prisoners, LGBTIQA+ people, and women.
Pro Bono Team Excellence Award – For outstanding achievement in pro bono advocacy by a team of at least three barristers.

Nominator Details

Your name*

Prefix (optional)

First Name

Last Name

Suffix (optional)

Your organisation*

Email*

Date of Nomination*

Your relationship with nominee(s)*

I am a solicitor and I instructed the nominee(s) I instructed the nominee via a direct-access brief I am a barrister I am a judicial or tribunal officer I am self-nominating

Other:

I would like this to be a confidential nomination*

Yes No

A confidential nomination will mean that the nominator details will be removed from the application form before it is circulated amongst the Victorian Bar Pro Bono Committee for consideration.

Type of pro bono work

Please specify the kind of work the nominee(s) undertook for their pro bono client (you can choose more than one, if applicable):*

The nominee(s) appeared in a court, tribunal or other forum The nominee(s) assisted a client or clients at a mediation/in an alternative dispute resolution context The nominee(s) provided advice (written or otherwise) for the client The nominee(s) drafted documents on behalf of the client

Other:

Appearance work

If the nominee(s) appeared in a court or tribunal, please provide as much detail of the appearance(s) as you can, such as: the forum; the judicial officer/decision maker; the nature of the appearance and what was involved e.g. was it an interlocutory application, a trial, was the nominee required to examine/cross examine witnesses, were written submissions prepared; how many days the nominee appeared in the matter; and the amount of time required for preparation for the appearance.

Drafting documents

Was the nominee(s) required to draft any documents relating to the pro bono matter and provide details of the same.

If there were documents prepared by the nominee(s), please indicate the estimated time involved in that preparation.

The matter

Please provide details of the matter with which the nominee(s) assisted. For example, details of the client’s circumstances, the history of the dispute, the issues involved, any particular obstacles or unusual features the nominee(s) was required to overcome.

Was there any particular legal, political or precedent significance in the nominee’s appearance and/or document preparation?

What was the significance for the pro bono client?