Above the Law's 2012 Lawyer of the Year Competition: Nominations Needed

Who should be Above the Law's Lawyer of the Year for 2012? We're now seeking your nominations!

With just two weeks left in the year 2012, we thought that now would be a good time to ask you, our loyal readers, to submit your nominations for Above the Law’s sixth annual LAWYER OF THE YEAR competition.

We’ll be running the show just like we’ve done it in the past: you submit your nominees (in the comments to this post), we’ll review them and pick a slate of finalists, and then you’ll vote on them in a reader poll — and hopefully your efforts won’t be mooted by the coming Mayan Apocalypse.

The winner will receive the glorious and honorific title of Above the Law’s Lawyer of the Year for 2012. Feel the prestige, my friends!

So, what are the criteria for nominations? We’ll break it down for you….

As we noted in last year’s call for nominations:

What are the criteria for being our Lawyer of the Year? Since you’re doing the nominating and voting, it’s really up to you….

You can nominate a LOTY based on whatever reasoning you choose — e.g., because the lawyer in question is influential, infamous, awesome, or awful.

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This year had many stand out performances from lawyers, judges, and legal educators alike, so the nomination process should be relatively easy. By way of example, last year’s Lawyer of the Year finalists included lawyers from all four of these categories. The group included the likes of Jesse Strauss and David Anziska (influential), Reema Bajaj (infamous), Elana Dawson (awesome), and Gregory Berry (awful).

Winners of the title in the past have ranged from Professor Paul Campos in 2011, the leaders of Law School Transparency in 2010, Justice Sonia Sotomayor in 2009, President Barack Obama in 2008, and Loyola 2L in 2007. While most of our winners have come from the serious side of the ledger, every year is different, and anything is possible when it comes to the nominees for the Lawyer of the Year title.

As evidenced by Loyola 2L’s presence on the list of winners past, not all nominees need to be famous, and not all nominees need to be named. Our readers can feel free to nominate anonymous individuals, but in the interest of full disclosure, most winners of the illustrious Lawyer of the Year title have been named.

We have only three things to ask of you before the nominations begin to roll in:

  • Please try to nominate actual lawyers.
  • Please try to nominate lawyers who are still living.
  • Please submit all nominations in the comments to this post.

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The comments are now open, so let the nominations begin! Please submit your nominations by WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 19, at 11:59 PM (Eastern time). We look forward to reading your thoughts and insights on the many potential candidates who will go on to vie for the title of Above the Law’s Lawyer of the Year for 2012.

Earlier: ATL’s 2011 Lawyer of the Year: The Finalists!