Birmingham Law Society will launch its 2026 Legal Awards at the beginning of September. This is our annual search for the top talent within the region’s legal community, and for 2026 an important change is coming.
At the 2026 Legal Awards, only members of Birmingham Law Society will be eligible to apply for an award in any category. Previously, the awards have been open to all in the West Midlands region.
A further change is that, in addition to the award winners, qualifying shortlisted award candidates will be awarded a Birmingham Law Society ‘Hallmark of Excellence’ in order to recognise their achievements. This can be proudly displayed on candidates’ websites, email signatures, social media, and promotional materials. It’s a simple but powerful way to highlight the calibre of talent across our region and raise the profile of those making a real impact in the legal profession.
Matt O’Brien, incoming President of the Birmingham Law Society, said about the change, “We have thought long and hard about bringing this change into effect. Many of the local and regional law societies already enforce this when it comes to their awards. We want to make sure our existing members benefit from this change but also show new members that there are numerous benefits to being members of Birmingham Law Society including our flagship awards ceremony.”
The legal awards will continue to cover 14 award categories and all nominations are judged by an experienced panel of independent judges, brought together from the world of law, business and academia. Interviews will take place in January 2026 with the awards taking place on Thursday 12th February 2026.
If you are not already a member of Birmingham Law Society and would like to become a member before the launch of our awards, you will need to fill in our application form here. Application forms will need to be sent in by 22nd October 2025 to then be approved at the October Council meeting. You will then be eligible to apply for the 2026 Legal Awards. Please note that you can still send in nominations when the awards launch in September, and we will then follow up with those who are not members to remind you to apply for membership before you can complete the awards application form which will then be due in by November.