New Superannuation Lawyer Award
The purpose of the New Superannuation Lawyer Award is to encourage young lawyers who practice or research in the field of superannuation law to explore issues of significance that have a bearing on the legal framework for superannuation in Australia. A theme will be selected and announced each year that the award is offered.
With the longer-term aspiration of attracting new lawyers to take an interest in the field of superannuation law, this award seeks to:
- develop a new lawyer’s understanding in relation to superannuation and trust law;
- enable a new lawyer to attend our national conference, who might not otherwise be able to attend the event;
- create a platform for new lawyers with an emerging interest in superannuation to showcase their interest through a piece of legal writing; and
- publicly recognise and highlight the award winner as an emerging new superannuation lawyer.
2026 nomination round
Nominations for the 2026 round are now closed.
Eligibility criteria
- The person is a “New Lawyer” (that is, a lawyer in their first 7 years of practice post admission, but not at the partner level).
- Submission of a paper of up to 3,000 words (excluding footnotes or endnotes) that addresses the theme "A Rock and a Hard Place"
The award
- Domestic flights to Hobart (if required) and accommodation if located outside of Tasmania; and free registration to the next Superannuation Lawyers Conference.
- A panel appointed by the Superannuation Committee will review all papers submitted and will determine which author will be selected for the award. Papers recommended by the selection panel may also be published in the Australian Superannuation Law Bulletin, on the Law Council’s website or in a newsletter.
- The winner will be confidentially contacted in early February. If the winner has already registered to attend the conference, they will be offered the option of attending the following year.
Past recipients
Erik Pridgen was awarded the 2026 New Superannuation Lawyer Award in recognition for their paper titled, 'Claustrophobic and Cavernous: A Rocky Time for Trustee Expenditure'.
Rebecca Bailey was awarded the 2025 New Superannuation Lawyers Award in recognition for their paper titled, 'AFCA’s impact on the gender gap in retirement'.
Ben Wighton was awarded the 2024 New Superannuation Lawyers Award in recognition for their paper titled, 'Is super vaccinated against insider trading in readiness for the next round of market volatility?'
Madeline Muddle was awarded the 2023 New Superannuation Lawyers Award in recognition for their paper titled, ‘The heat is on: ESG investment and expenditure in the context of the best financial interests duty’.
Tom Gerrits was awarded the 2022 New Superannuation Lawyers Award in recognition of their paper titled, ‘Royal Commission Aftershocks: Emergence of the Section 56 Profit-For-Member Trustee War Chest’.
Sanela Osmanovic was awarded the 2020 New Superannuation Lawyers Award in recognition of their paper titled, ‘Compare the BEAR - Is the UK's performance a reliable indicator of our future performance?’.
Jane Morgan was awarded the 2019 New Superannuation Lawyers Award in recognition for their paper titled, ‘Great expectations and millennial disengagement with superannuation’.
Contact
Chelsea De Silva
Executive Officer
T. 02 6246 3722
E. chelsea.desilva@lawcouncil.au
Last Updated on 10/04/2026
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