However, we really value what our clients think of us. Read some of their comments here.
Family Lawyer Razia Jogi, who leads the Family Law team in Bradford reached the 2009 shortlist for Solicitor of the Year at the 2009 Law Society Excellence Awards. These prestigious national awards celebrate the best that the legal profession has to offer. Razia was nominated for her outstanding commitment to her clients, and her work to raise awareness of forced marriage legislation, through the setting up of a groundbreaking conference on the Forced Marriage Act 2007 in Bradford in November 2009.
Switalskis Solicitors has been a familiar name to the judges of the Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards for several years. These highly respected awards have been organised by the Legal Aid Practitioners Group since 2002 to celebrate the important, but often unrecognised, work of legal aid lawyers in the UK. Chris Binns, head of our Mental Health Law Department in Bradford has twice been a nominee in the Mental Health category (2005 and 2006); Lindsey Rhodes, our Head of Public Law, Community Care & Welfare Benefits Law in Wakefield was nominee in the Social and Welfare category in 2006, making Switalskis the only firm in the UK to receive more than one nomination that year. In 2007, Michael Kennedy, Partner and Head of our Mental Health department was named Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year in the Mental Health category. In 2008 the firm was shortlisted for the Legal Aid Firm/Not-for-Profit Agency of the Year Award. Nominations for these prestigious awards come from legal professionals in a number of fields: solicitors, barristers, judges and tribunal members and the inclusion of Switalskis in the finalists for three consecutive years is clear testament of the esteem our firm is held in throughout the legal community.
In 2006 Switalskis Solicitors was named Yorkshire Law Firm of the Year (1-30 Partners). We fought off extremely tough competition from many other well-respected legal practices based throughout the Yorkshire region including significantly larger firms based in Sheffield and Leeds.
In choosing the finalists, the panel of judges considered the reputation of the firm, its commitment to client care (as demonstrated by positive feedback from clients) and its dedication to the welfare and development of staff. Scoring highly across all of the criteria allowed us to win this prestigious award which is one of a series successes for the firm.
The firm also took the Law Firm of the Year (1-30 Partners) title in the 2008/9 Yorkshire Lawyer Awards, making Switalskis the only firm which has achieved this accolade twice in the history of the Awards. The firm's outstanding commitment to making legal services affordable for all, as well as our significant growth and our Yorkshire pride were amongst the factors that prompted the judges to choose Switalskis for this prestigious Award for a second time.
2009 saw Switalskis reach the final four of the in the Wakefield District Business of the Year Award, sponsored by Wakefield Council for a second time. The award was judged on a number of criteria, including strong growth, innovation strategies and market leadership.
Switalskis Solicitors fought off competition from over one hundred companies in the Wakefield area to reach the final four nominees for this coveted award. As a finalist for the Business of the Year, our competition in the final four were prestigious organisations, each with a high profile in Wakefield and beyond. In November 2007, we were delighted to be a 'Highly Commended' runner-up in the same category. Switalskis is proud to be a part of the vibrant and growing Wakefield business community, and delighted that the star quality of our Wakefield team has been recognised in this commendation.
Switalskis Solicitors is proud to be listed in Chambers UK Guide to the Legal Profession. Chambers is an independent guide to UK legal firms based on interviews with both lawyers and their clients. It ranks legal firms after assessing a range of criteria which are valued by clients, including technical ability, service, diligence and commitment. Our Family Law and Criminal Law departments are ranked amongst the best in Yorkshire, and our Public Law team is ranked amongst the UK's best. Partners Michael Kennedy and Rob Casey are listed as Leaders in their Fields in the Guide.