Awards & Recognition

Chapter Award Criteria and Guidelines

Eligibility
All ALA chapters are eligible to be nominated.

Submissions
Submissions for this recognition will use an entry form that’s made available when the award opens. It will be accepted from any ALA member in good standing. Check out our Guidelines for a Great ALA Awards Submission.

Evaluation Criteria
The task force tasked with reviewing entries will use Chapter Awards Criteria (2024) to evaluate each submission.

Nominee Notification
Recipients will be announced at the awards reception of the 2024 Annual Conference & Expo in Aurora, Colorado and be recognized on our website, in a digital issue of Legal Management and in the BOLD Bites newsletter.

Deadline
All entries should be submitted using the entry form and are due by February 9, 2024.

Terms and Conditions

• All submissions are final. No additions or changes are permitted to the entry after receipt by ALA headquarters.
• All entries become property of ALA.
• ALA may reproduce, reprint or highlight the entry either in full or in part in its communications and/or at its events.
• ALA reserves and exercises the right to verify the accuracy of the entry. Supplying inaccurate information may lead to disqualification.
• Awards will be presented only to entrants in good standing with ALA.

Elevate ALA Award Criteria and Guidelines

The Elevate ALA Award recognizes up to three recipients whose efforts in professional development, networking, visibility and inclusion are exemplary. These efforts should demonstrate advancement in the following areas:

• Professional development content
• Relationships between legal management professionals and their peers, as well as legal management professionals and business partners
• ALA’s prominence in the legal community
• Diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA)

Eligibility
Any ALA chapter, individual, law firm, legal department, business partner or other organization in the legal community is welcome to apply. All applicants must be in good standing with ALA to be eligible for this recognition. Only one entry will be accepted per applicant. The activities in the submission must have occurred during the 2023 calendar year.

Submission Requirements
A written submission (essay), no more than 1,000 words in length, is required. The submission must address all four areas outlined below (professional development, networking, visibility and DEIA). Check out our Guidelines for a Great ALA Awards Submission.

Support materials that directly relate to the written narrative may be included. Support materials or samples not referenced in the essay will not be considered. Please limit support materials to 10 pages.

Section One: Professional Development
This section must describe how the applicant has elevated educational and career development content as it relates to legal management professionals. Details of any resources committed to elevating the professional development content should be provided. Consider addressing the following:

• The percentage of annual revenues used for overall education

• A complete listing of all education offered, including:
  • The date offered
  • Title/topic
  • Speaker
  • Length of program
  • Resources used (speaker fees and costs, member time spent planning and organizing the session, specifics about how the educational offering was promoted)
    

• Details on all scholarships/stipends awarded to ALA members to further their professional development, including:
  • A description of the criteria used for awarding the scholarship/stipend
  • The impact on the recipients’ engagement with ALA
  • Whether any assistance is offered to those taking the Certified Legal Manager (CLM)^® exam

Section Two: Networking
This section must describe how the applicant has elevated relationships among legal management professionals and their peers, as well as legal management professionals and business partners. Consider addressing the following:

• Details on any events held specifically to strengthen the relationships between legal management professionals
  
• Details of all initiatives/events with business partners that strengthened relationships between ALA, the applicant and the business partners
  
• Describe any impact it has had on the legal management professionals’ and business partners’ perceived value of ALA

Section Three: Visibility
This section must describe any initiatives the organization or individual has undertaken to elevate the visibility of ALA in the legal community. Consider addressing the following:

• Details on specific programs/events along with audiences reached and potential return on investment (ROI). (This may include participating/attendance at state bar events, strategic alliances, speaking engagements outside ALA, marketing campaigns in publications, social media, etc.)
  
• Details on how the applicant has elevated the recognition of ALA members, volunteers, CLMs and business partners within the legal community

Section Four: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA)
This section must describe any initiatives the organization or individual has undertaken to elevate DEIA within the organization and in the legal community. Consider addressing the following:

• Details on how initiatives undertaken by the applicant foster collaborative experiences and opportunities that remove barriers for underrepresented members of the legal community
  
• Details on how initiatives undertaken by the applicant increase awareness of and sensitivity to the differences within the legal community and advance the concept of inclusivity and acceptance

Evaluation Criteria
A joint task force comprised of members of the ALA Board of Directors and Chapter Resource Team will use Elevate ALA Award Score Sheet to evaluate each submission. This task force is empowered to connect with applicants and request additional details regarding a submission if necessary.

Notification
Recipients will be announced at the awards reception of the 2024 Annual Conference & Expo in Aurora, Colorado and be recognized on our website, in a digital issue of Legal Management and in the BOLD Bites newsletter.

Deadline
Written submissions and all supporting documentation should be submitted using the entry form by February 9th, 2024.

Terms and Conditions

• All submissions are final. No additions or changes are permitted to the entry after receipt by ALA headquarters.
• All entries become property of ALA.
• ALA may reproduce, reprint or highlight the entry either in full or in part in its communications and/or at its events.
• ALA reserves and exercises the right to verify the accuracy of the entry. Supplying inaccurate information may lead to disqualification.
• Awards will be presented only to entrants in good standing.

NextGen Leader Award Criteria and Guidelines

The NextGen Leader Award recognizes up to 40 members per year that embody the essence of the ALA Code of Ethics through their accomplishments, their leadership qualities and the impact they are making on their legal organization, the legal industry and the Association.

Recipients of the NextGen Leader Award demonstrate conviction, dedication and relentless pursuit of personal and professional excellence through their engagement, advancement and influence in early interactions with the Association of Legal Administrators. Examples of this impact may include volunteering to support an initiative, activity, or event-related program or project at the ALA chapter or international level; joining a committee or task force; serving as a chapter officer; recruiting new members; or introducing innovative new ideas to elevate the visibility and relevancy of the Association at the chapter and/or international level.

Eligibility
To be considered for the NextGen Leader Award, a candidate must:

• Be an ALA member in good standing.
• Be a first-time member of ALA (not someone who has rejoined).
• Have been a member for more than one but less than five years.
• New to legal management, new to the legal industry or under the age of 40 at the time of nomination.
• Abide by the ALA Code of Ethics.

Nominations
Nominations for this recognition should be submitted using the entry form and will be accepted from any ALA member in good standing. Self-nomination is permitted. Check out our Guidelines for a Great ALA Awards Submission.

Evaluation Criteria
The task force tasked with reviewing entries will use established criteria to evaluate each submission.

Nominee Notification
Recipients will be announced at the awards reception of the 2024 Annual Conference & Expo in Aurora, Colorado and be recognized on our website, in a digital issue of Legal Management and in the BOLD Bites newsletter.

Deadline
All entries should be submitted using the entry form and are due by February 9, 2024.

Terms and Conditions

• All submissions are final. No additions or changes are permitted to the entry after receipt by ALA headquarters.
• All entries become property of ALA.
• ALA may reproduce, reprint or highlight the entry either in full or in part in its communications and/or at its events.
• ALA reserves and exercises the right to verify the accuracy of the entry. Supplying inaccurate information may lead to disqualification.
• Awards will be presented only to entrants in good standing.

Many think of this as a "Volunteer of the Year" award, but that’s not the case. The basis for the award is not limited to service an individual has provided during the prior year. Recipients have been recognized for either service on particular projects or continuous/ongoing volunteer efforts, and generally such service or efforts are at the international level.

Unlike our other awards, there aren't any specific criteria beyond what we've outlined here.

Roadmap to Success

(Recognizing chapter activities from January 1, 2024–February 28, 2025.)

The Presidents’ Award of Excellence, named in honor of Past ALA Presidents, recognizes chapters for their efforts in achieving excellence in chapter leadership.

The Presidents’ Award of Excellence encourages chapters to take effective and collaborative action in support of ALA’s mission:

 ALA is the catalyst for growth by providing:    

• Diverse educational experiences. 
• Engaged peer communities. 
• Strategic solutions. 
• Dynamic resources. 
• Trusted networks. 

The Presidents’ Award of Excellence criteria also aligns with ALA’s five Strategic Focus Areas:

• Education and Professional Development
• Impact
• Innovation
• Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA)
• Member Experience

A member of the Chapter Resource Team (CRT) will meet with the chapter president (and potentially other chapter leaders) to review the award criteria and the chapter performance objectives. They will also help the chapter set goals for the year. Throughout the year, the CRT and ALA headquarters are available to assist chapters in achieving these objectives.

 ALA chapters are expected to meet and exceed the criteria in the interactive submission form template found here. Select items ask that an example be provided. Please use the blank cell space below that item to describe the action, event, etc. that fulfills that criterion.

Activities should be completed within 12 months before the award submission date.

Presented to those whose commitment to professionalism, dedication to the advancement of the legal management profession and record of long-term service to ALA sets the standard for all who aspire to achieve excellence and success.

While many ALA members contribute tremendous amounts of time and effort to the growth of the legal management profession and the success of ALA, recipients of the Spirit of ALA Award are individuals who have demonstrated all of the following in extraordinary, consistent and significant measure:

1. An unswerving commitment to professionalism. This is defined through a career exemplifying the highest standards of personal conduct; a record of fairness, equality and courage in dealing with employees, lawyers and other legal management professionals; and a clear recognition by one’s peers as being a model for others and a standard-setter in the profession. 
2. Exceptional dedication to the advancement of law firm administration as demonstrated by teaching and writing activities; mentoring and counseling of others; participation in activities promoting the credibility of the profession; community and civic service; development of new approaches and techniques; or other activities contributing to the knowledge, skills and abilities of individual legal management professionals and/or to the profession as a whole.
3. A record of service to the Association of Legal Administrators that far exceeds normal expectations and also provides a model and inspiration for participation and involvement by others. Such a record will be demonstrated by successful leadership and service (a) over an extended period of time in (b) a number of different positions or capacities at (c) various local, national or international levels.