The Australian Corporate Lawyers Association (ACLA) last week signed an agreement with LexisNexis’ newspaper division, the organisers of the Australian Law Awards, that will see ACLA play a future role in the “premier event of the mainline profession”, said ACLA CEO Peter Turner.

This includes the organisation’s endorsing of the event, indicating ACLA’s faith in the integrity of the awards, as well as in the nomination and voting process.

The Fuji Xerox Australian Law Awards 2005 promise to set the benchmark for awards within the legal profession, said organisers. This year’s judging methodology will allow the most accurate reflection of excellence within the legal profession since the Awards’ inception, and is to be driven by an audited, secret ballot of Australian in-house counsel and other consumers of legal services.

Managing partners, HR directors and other senior managers are this year given a chance to place their votes for who should win each award via the Awards’ website www.lawawards.com.au.

This year’s Awards will honour winners in 24 separate practice areas and feature nine Premium Awards, including the coveted Australian Law Firm of the Year and Managing Partner of the Year Awards.

ACLA president Pamela Hass said the Association is this year showing its support for the legal event because “we believe there is credibility in the Awards”.

“We put it to our national board meeting and the board was more than happy to partner and move forward with the Awards,” she said.

As part of the agreement with ACLA, LexisNexis will now resume sponsorship of ACLA’s own awards, which will take place in Melbourne in November. This, said Turner, was also an attractive part of the deal.

The Awards ceremony and gala dinner are to be held on 2 June at the Westin Hotel in Sydney. According to organisers, this year’s event promises to be every bit as spectacular as previous years.