Neuberger Prize win for second-year Law student
The award provides a pathway to funding and mentorship for undergraduate Law students at non-Russell Group universities and this year will increase the level of support for winners.
Law LLB student, Latanya Gordon, is one of only eight recipients of this year’s prestigious Neuberger Prize, set up by the Lincoln’s Inn in 2015 to recognise exceptional students about to start the final year of their undergraduate law degrees.
Only one student can be nominated by each university and successful candidates are given the opportunity to integrate with the Inn, one of only four Inns of Court in London dedicated to the qualification, training and development of members throughout their legal careers. The annual prize also provides winners with the opportunities to network with members of the Inn and its staff and prepare them to apply for scholarships.
Acknowledging the huge achievement of being the sole nominee put forward, from Birkbeck, 25-year old Latanya expressed: “I was pleased that they considered the whole person and life experiences beyond academic grades. I’d moved to the UK from Jamaica at eighteen years old and started at Birkbeck in 2019. I knew early on the Law was for me and I continue to find it fascinating, especially when people are genuinely in need of help. Everyone deserves the chance to tell their story and for their cases to be considered within the context of the Law.”
She reflected on her winning application saying, “I spoke about both my educational as well as my personal experiences, including the many things I do in my spare time- working with two charities, writing articles for the Law Society and being elected as Vice-President of Birkbeck’s African Caribbean Society. I also explained my work as one of five students from Birkbeck working with the Refugee Law Clinic alongside a supervising Barrister. I wanted to show that there’s more to me than just achieving good grades and I encourage anyone who may doubt themselves to just apply.”
Professor Daniel Monk, Careers Director in the Department of Law added, "Choosing which student to nominate was incredibly hard – but Latanya stood out and we are all really delighted by her success and look forward to her sharing her experience at Lincoln’s Inn with us all."
This year, the Inn has made several changes to the prize so that winners get additional support and guidance for their future careers. The winning students will get the opportunity to attend a summer school at the Inn, be matched with a mentor for the third year of their degree and will be given the opportunity to complete a mini-pupillage as well as receiving a cash prize of £250 and free admission to the Inn.
Since its inception, there have been 32 winners of the Neuberger Prize. Of these, thirteen have received scholarships to help them fund their Bar Professional Training Course.