Alana Kushnir Named a Finalist in Two Categories of the Lawyers Weekly Women in Law Awards 2022
Guest Work Agency (GWA) Director and Founder Alana Kushnir has been shortlisted for ‘Sole Practitioner of the Year’ and ‘Pro Bono-Community Legal Centre Lawyer of the Year’ in the Lawyers Weekly Women in Law Awards 2022.
SOLE PRACTITIONER OF THE YEAR
The ‘Sole Practitioner of the Year’ category recognises outstanding performance by a female sole practitioner with no more than three support staff or lawyer contractors operating in metropolitan, suburban, rural or regional areas of Australia over FY21-22.
GWA’s submission for this category highlighted high profile creative projects for clients from public artwork commissions to brand collaborations and advising new NFT (non-fungible token) platforms, as well as Alana Kushnir’s continuing role of educating art industry participants on the importance of the law as a commercial - rather than just defensive - tool.
PRO BONO - COMMUNITY LEGAL CENTRE LAWYER OF THE YEAR
The ‘Pro Bono - Community Legal Centre Lawyer of the Year’ category recognises a female lawyer who has demonstrated a commitment to the community over FY21-22 via at least one significant pro bono initiative or community legal centre.
Alana’s submission focused on GWA’s Collingwood Yards Legal Advice Clinic initiative - a free monthly art law advice clinic for residents of Collingwood Yards, a not-for-profit arts organisation and arts precinct in Melbourne’s inner north - as well as a pro bono gallerist dispute matter, where Alana is representing six artists on a pro bono basis who are owed missing artworks and sale proceeds from a prominent art dealer and gallerist.
“It is rare to find an advisor who understands the complexity of a sector and can be sensitive to specific needs whilst supplying state of the art technical advice. The problem-solving, positivity and curiosity is refreshing and incredibly supportive.”
Sophie Travers:
Collingwood Yards CEO
RECOGNITION OF ART LAW
Alana commented on being named as a finalist in the Women in Law Awards 2022: “I feel honoured to be recognised by the legal profession for the important work GWA is doing for artists, gallerists, arts organisations and other art industry participants. I hope it encourages other female lawyers to follow their passion and consider non-traditional areas of practice.”
ABOUT THE LAWYERS WEEKLY WOMEN IN LAW AWARDS
The Women in Law Awards was created to provide a platform for all successful women in the legal industry to highlight their accomplishments and be nationally recognised for their outstanding hard work while propelling the industry forward.
This year’s finalist list features over 286 high-achieving professionals within the legal industry across 31 submission-based categories. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in Melbourne on 24 November 2022.
Lawyers Weekly Editor Jerome Doraisamy said: “Significant strides have been made towards parity in the legal profession. But there remains a way to go.”
“It is Lawyers Weekly’s great privilege to be able to host this event, and to acknowledge and celebrate the myriad accomplishments of the extraordinary women making up our nation’s legal profession.
“Congratulations to all of the finalists - we can’t wait to see you on the night, and look forward to raising a glass in your honour,” he continued.
Guest Work Agency is a boutique art law and advisory firm based in Melbourne, but is international in reach. It is the first dedicated art law practice in Australia, working with artists, collectors, galleries, arts organisations, art fairs and art tech start-ups.
For more information contact us at info@guestworkagency.art.