Academic Awards - Council of Australian Law Deans

About the Awards

The Council of Australian Law Deans (CALD), in collaboration with the Legal Education Associate Deans (LEAD) Network and the Law Associate Deans Research Network (LADRN), proudly presents the CALD Academic Awards, a national initiative celebrating excellence in legal education and research across Australian law schools.

These awards recognise outstanding contributions by Australian legal academics. The CALD Academic Awards aim to:

Promote excellence and innovation in legal education and research
Strengthen the identity of law as a distinct academic discipline
Provide national recognition for contributions to legal academia
Showcase exemplary work to the broader academic and professional community
Support pathways to national and international awards and academic promotion

Award Categories

CALD Legal Education Awards

Recognising excellence in teaching, engagement, and supervision

CALD Legal Research Award

Celebrating outstanding legal scholarship and research innovation

CALD Lifetime Achievement Award

Honouring sustained and exceptional contributions to legal academia

Each Legal Education and Legal Research Award winner receives $1000 and a trophy. The Lifetime Achievement Award winner receives a trophy.

Awards Timeline & Process

The winners of each award are determined by a panel of assessors comprised of Australian legal academics. For the Legal Education Awards, the panels are selected and appointed by LEAD, while for the Legal Research Awards, the panels are selected and appointed by LADRN. The panel for the Lifetime Achievement Award is the CALD Executive.

The administration and adjudication of the awards is overseen by the CALD Academic Awards Committee. The Committee consists of the CALD Vice Chair Legal Education, the CALD Vice Chair Legal Research, one LEAD Co-Chair, one LADRN Co-Chair, the CALD Executive Officer, the LEAD Administrator, and the LADRN Administrator.

Call for Nominations

Opens in November

Submission Deadline

February

For 2026: Wednesday 25 February 2026

Assessment Period

March – May

Notification of Winners

May

Public announcement at the ALAA Gala Dinner

July

How to Apply

Each CALD member law school may submit one nomination per award category. Nominations must be endorsed by the relevant Associate Dean or Dean and submitted online via this website.

Click here to view the CALD Academic Awards Information Pack.

Steps to Apply

1 Review the award criteria and eligibility set out in the Information Pack.

2 Prepare all supporting documents. Note that strict formatting and page limits apply.

3 Complete the online Nomination Form and upload the supporting documents by the deadline.