Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award

Supported by LexisNexis

The IBA Young Lawyers' Committee annually presents an award to a young lawyer who has shown not only excellence in their work and achievements in their career to date, but also a commitment to professional and ethical standards as well as a commitment to the larger community. The award is free to enter and it is open to all lawyers, whether or not they are members of the IBA.

Application details

Each year, the IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee present an award to a young lawyer who has shown not only excellence in their work and achievements in their career to date, but also a commitment to professional and ethical standards as well as a commitment to the larger community.

The IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee’s goal is to identify, discuss and promote issues relevant to young lawyers. Its purpose is to provide a point of first contact for young lawyers to the IBA so that they can learn about the other IBA divisions and become further involved in the Association.

The award created in partnership with the IBA and LexisNexis is in recognition of William Reece Smith Jr. A former IBA President, William Reece Smith Jr, who passed away in 2013, distinguished himself as one the finest and most respected legal experts. In a career spanning more than 50 years, he demonstrated leadership in the legal profession as an accomplished lawyer, an extensively published legal scholar and lecturer, a mentor and an outstanding community servant. In addition, Mr Smith exemplified a commitment to advancing many charitable and civic causes, most notably in his support for legal services to the poor. LexisNexis is delighted to sponsor an award in his name to recognise a young lawyer who has demonstrated outstanding professionalism.

2023 Recipient


Human rights lawyer Raphael Lorenzo Aguiling Pangalangan of the Republic of the Philippines is the recipient of the 2023 International Bar Association (IBA) Annual Outstanding Young Lawyer Award for his unwavering dedication to human rights and criminal justice through advocacy and academia. The award was presented by Alberto Mata Rodríguez, Co-Chair of the IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee, at the IBA Annual Conference 2023 in Paris at the Section on Public and Professional Interest (SPPI) breakfast on Thursday 2 November.

On being the 2023 awardee, Mr Pangalangan said: ‘I stand before you today, honoured and humbled. The IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award is not just an accolade that celebrates individual accomplishment. It is a recognition of the victims we represent and the cause we advance. It is an affirmation of our greater purpose as legal professionals. This may come as a surprise to those outside of the practice, but contrary to the Hollywood image now-all-too familiar: We as lawyers are much more than simply legal mercenaries for hire. We are social engineers. And it is that social function that lies at the core of the legal profession. It is what transforms our work from being merely an occupation to our vocation. It is that shared duty that brings lawyers from all walks of life to the IBA today.’

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Previous Recipients


Congratulations to Yorm-Aba-Abledu, winner of the 2022 Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award!

Congratulations to Michael Polak, winner of the 2021 Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award!

Congratulations to Daye Gang, winner of the 2020 Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award!

Congratulations to Elif Goksen, winner of the 2019 Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award!

Congratulations to Oliver den Dauw, winner of the 2018 Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award!

Congratulations to Remy Choo, winner of the 2016 Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award!

Congratulations to Federica D'Alessandra, winner of the 2015 Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award!

Congratulations to Maria Belen Espineira, winner of the 2014 Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award!

  • Congratulations to Alberto Mata, winner of the 2013 Annual IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer Award!