ALM’s series, ‘About the Awards’, provides Q&As and columns with editors across different publications and an external roster of volunteer judges. These dialogues and write-ups are curated with the intention of granting readers and future nominees a clearer understanding of the evaluation system that is used for awards affiliated with ALM Recognition Events. A recent Q&A with Michael Marciano, Regional Managing Editor was undertaken in the past week.
The current focus is on insights from several judges on the external panel for the Rising Stars category. Each judge in question are previous recipients of the Southeastern Legal Awards and volunteered their time to review entries this year. In cases where a conflict of interest might arise, such as a judge being personally acquainted with a nominee, the judge is mandated to refrain from reviewing that particular entry.
The deadline for the Southeastern Legal Awards has been moved to March 8. Those interested can visit the awards site to submit nominations.
Among the judges is Michael Mayo, a founding partner in Mayo Hill Law Firm based in Macon, Georgia. He specializes in medical malpractice and complex business litigation, and was named on the On the Rise list in 2021. Another distinguished judge is Jonathan Porter, presently a partner at Husch Blackwell, and formerly a federal prosecutor.
The external panel this year also includes Daniel Huynh, partner at Morris Manning & Martin and a 2023 Best Mentors honoree, as well as Madison Kitchens, partner at King & Spalding and a 2021 Georgia Legal Awards Rising Star. Jones Day partner and 2023 Rising Star Mary Myers also serves on the panel.
Those with queries or wishing to nominate deserving attorneys or legal departments, can do so via the Southeastern Legal Awards site. Communications can be directed to Recognition Desk Manager, Pearl Wu at the provided email address.