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The Award of Excellence in International Law recognizes any single or combination of the following outstanding achievements and contributions with respect to the practice of international law in Ontario by the Award recipient:

· Leadership in the bar or the government or the Law Society of Upper Canada or 
 OBA in relation to international law issues, legislation and practice;

· Proven skills and expertise in the provision of legal services, including written and
  oral advocacy, legal  advice, negotiation skills, and alternative dispute resolution;

· Characteristically exhibits the highest degrees of professionalism, integrity and civility;

· Significant contributions in the area of legal education or professional development;

· Contribution to the community through pro bono activities, or other projects or initiatives;

· Leadership in the international law bar through the sharing of knowledge, experience, skill,
  commitment, and by acting as a role model and mentor to new members of the profession
  and to his or her peers; and/ or

· Enhancing the practice of international law in the Province of Ontario.

Eligibility: Any individual not including current International Law Section Executive Members, the immediate Past Chair of the Section or a member of the OBA Executive Committee. The nominee must be an OBA member in good standing.

The international law practices of the Section's members are wide and varied, including, but not limited to: public international law; private international law; international commercial transactions, franchising and distribution; cross-border litigation; international dispute resolution such as mediation, commercial or treaty arbitration; international competition law; cross-border insolvency; international trade and customs law. Accordingly, the practice of international law by a nominee need not be exclusively tied to a rigid definition of the field, but should reflect the achievements and contributions of the nominee within part of the field of international law as practiced in Ontario.

Presentation: The award is presented at the Annual meeting of the Section held in the month of June (or as otherwise decided by the Executive Committee). Only one award is presented annually.

Nomination Procedure: A nomination requires the signature of one OBA member in good standing. To assist the Committee, each nomination shall be accompanied by a summary of the reasons for the nomination. The nominee must be advised by his or her nominator(s) that their name will be put forward for this award and his or her consent must be so confirmed by the nominator(s) in the nomination materials submitted.

Deadline for Nominations: Nominations and supporting material must be filed with the Nominations Committee of the International Law Section on a deadline to be set each year. The deadline for the 2008 Award is: April 7, 2008.

Selection Process: The Award recipient is selected by the Executive Committee of the International Law Section, which is assisted in its deliberations by a Nomination Committee comprised of the Chair, Vice-Chair and the immediate past Chair of the section who is currently a member of the section.

Nominations shall be solicited through the members of the International Law Section, for example, by way of notice in The Globetrotter, the newsletter of the section, and the Section webpage. The Nomination Committee will review the nominations and make a recommendation to the Section Executive Committee. The final decision shall be made by a majority vote of the Executive Committee at a regular meeting of the Section Executive or at a special meeting of the Executive Committee called for the purpose.

Award: A plaque (or other suitable item as determined by the Executive Committee) is presented to the Award recipient.

  Please send your nominations and summaries of the reasons for the nomination by April 7, 2008 to:

Ian A. Laird
Chair, International Law Section
Ontario Bar Association,
20 Toronto Street, Suite 300,
Toronto, Ontario M5C 2B8
Fax: 416-869-1390