LAW students, trainee solicitors and young lawyers from England and Wales are invited to enter the 2008 Graham Turnbull essay competition.
The competition, which is run by the International Human Rights Committee of the Law Society, is named after Graham Turnbull, a British solicitor who was killed eight years ago while working as a United Nations human rights monitor in Rwanda.
Essays by law students, trainee solicitors, pupil barristers and newly qualified solicitors from England and Wales will debate the question: 'is human rights law relevant in combating poverty and social injustice.'
Andrew Holroyd, Law Society President, says the competition is a suitable tribute to Mr Turnbull.
He said: “The standard of entries for this competition is always exceptionally high, demonstrating how seriously young lawyers take human rights issues. The competition is a fitting legacy for solicitor Graham Turnbull who did so much to promote human rights."
The closing date for entries has been extended to Friday 8 February 2008. The competition is open to law students, trainee solicitors, pupil barristers and all solicitors and barristers, within three years of admission/call at the closing date, in or from England and Wales.
Entries will be judged by a panel including Professor Geraldine Van Bueren, Professor of International Human Rights Law at Queen Mary, University of London and Tony Fisher, Chair of the Law Society Human Rights Committee.
The winner will receive £500 from the Graham Turnbull Memorial Fund, with the runner-up receiving book tokens to the value of £250, kindly donated by LexisNexis Butterworths. Both winning essays will be published in the Law Society Gazette. The prize giving event will take place on 24 April 2008 at the Law Society.
Entries should be a maximum of 2,000 words including footnotes and the winning essay will be chosen by a panel of distinguished judges.
Entries should be sent to: Courtenay Barklem, Human Rights Adviser, The Law Society, 113 Chancery Lane , London WC2A 1PL or e-mail it to: internationalhumanrights@lawsociety.org.uk.