The ceremony: The 2026 Inspirational Women in Law Awards will be held on the 3rd of November at the London office of our Host Sponsor, Clifford Chance. The winner announcement ceremony will be followed by networking and celebrations. Details will be made available closer to the date. 

Categories: This year, legal professionals advocating for equality and diversity will be recognised across 11 categories. See the slide below for these categories. 

IN-HOUSE LAWYER OF THE YEAR

This Award recognises an in-house lawyer who has demonstrated a significant commitment to achieving equality for women in law. This might be through their own Award-worthy practice as an in-house lawyer, or through their dedication outside of their practice to achieving equality in the profession.

SOLICITOR OF THE YEAR

This Award recognises a female Solicitor who has shown great dedication to achieving equality for women in law, whether through their own excellent practice or through their commitment to increasing diversity outside of their practice.

BARRISTER OF THE YEAR

This Award recognises a female Barrister who has shown great dedication to achieving equality for women in law, whether through their own excellent practice or through their commitment to increasing diversity outside of their practice.

CHAMPION OF THE YEAR

This Award recognises a legal practitioner who has acted as a Champion for a particular cause related to increasing equality within the legal profession. Their work will have contributed to increasing access and participation in the legal profession, whether through their own excellence in their practice after having come from a non-traditional background, or their commitment outside of their practice to roles, activities or endeavours which are dedicated to increasing equality.

MENTOR OF THE YEAR

This Award recognises a Mentor within the legal profession whose dedication to their role as mentor has contributed to increasing equality within the legal profession.

PARALEGAL OF THE YEAR

This Award recognises a paralegal who has demonstrated a significant commitment to achieving equality for women in law. This might be through their own Award-worthy practice as a paralegal, or through their dedication outside of their practice to achieving equality in the profession.

LEGAL ACADEMIC OF THE YEAR

This Award recognises a Legal Academic who has shown considerable commitment to increasing equality within the profession, whether it be through their own excellence in their role, or through their contribution outside of their academic role.

LAW STUDENT OF THE YEAR

This Award recognises a trailblazing law student who has shown true dedication to increasing equality in the Law alongside studying their course. The student can be of any age, but must have been studying at some point during the 2025-26 academic year a qualifying law degree at a UK university (including both undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, such as a BA in Law, the PgDL, the LPC, or the SQE).

CILEX LAWYER / CHARTERED LEGAL EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR

This Award recognises a woman qualified through CILEX (Chartered Institute of Legal Executives) who has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to advancing gender equality within the legal profession.
Nominations: You can nominate either yourself or another individual you believe deserves to win in a particular category. Nominations are subject to two conditions:
The individual’s practice must be UK-based.
Their contributions to achieving equality for women should fall within the legal profession. Such contributions can be executed either through their work as legal practitioners or through additional work (e.g. pro bono).

Please fill out the Nomination Form below to nominate a contender. The form will close in September.

Nomination Form