Miles & Partners win two Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards

Miles & Partners LLP has received awards in two of the ten categories open for nomination at the Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards held in London last week.

Sophy Miles received the Mental Health Lawyer of the Year and David Jockelson was named Family Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year at a presentation ceremony in the Shakespeare's Globe on the bank of the Thames.

The event was organised by the Legal Aid Practitioners Group who launched the Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards in 2002 to recognise the exceptional achievements of lawyers committed to using their skills in representing the most vulnerable in society.

Sophy Miles is head of the mental health department and a founding partner of Miles & Partners LLP which has been serving clients in the areas of family, mental health and housing law since 1996. Sophy's nomination included support from the Official Solicitor who praised her for being a technically highly competent lawyer and at the same time compassionate and scrupulous in ascertaining the clients own wishes and feelings in order to ensure their views and wishes are given proper weight in Court of Protection Cases.

In supporting Sophy's nomination one client with a severe learning disability said: "She explained the ins and outs to me in a way that I could understand so when leaving her office I felt a weight lifted off my shoulders and felt safe".

David Jockelson has specialised in Family Law, especially Care Proceedings, for the last 20 years. Having previously run his own firm in which he established his reputation as a child care lawyer, David joined the Family Department at Miles & Partners in 2005.