We asked. You answered. We listened.
QLS has announced the launch of its inaugural Future Leaders Committee (FLC). I’ve had the privilege of having an ‘inside scoop’ on this campaign since its inception and can wholeheartedly say that this initiative exemplifies QLS’s commitment to supporting and advancing the next generation of legal professionals.
While the establishment of a committee comprising of members who are either 35 years of age or younger or have 0-5 years post admission experience (PAE) is not unique, the Future Leaders Committee is.
A voice for the people as chosen by the people.
Everything down to the naming of the FLC was decided in consultation with the affected stakeholders. Law students, early career lawyers, members of the profession who are 35 years of age or younger and of course, QLS Council were consulted at every stage; every amendment to the Charter, even the campaign design was provided to our QLS Early Career Lawyers committee for feedback. It was imperative that the platform QLS wanted to create for the next generation was appropriate and representative of the group it intended to serve.
The purpose of this committee is not only to provide the voice of the future an appropriate platform to advocate change but to empower them with the support of QLS Council to then action those changes for the benefit of the wider legal profession. As a democratically elected committee, the FLC is a voice for the people as chosen by the people – that means only people from the represented segments (either 35 years or younger or 0-5 years PAE) are eligible to nominate and vote. After all, it’s your profession.
Why ‘Future Leaders’
A large number of lawyers have joined the profession later in their professional careers with invaluable experiences and diverse backgrounds. We also have members of our profession who, at 35 years of age, have been in practice for some 10 years. It would be a disservice then to categorise either of these segments with a blanket age/experience descriptor such as ‘young.’ So how do we group together two segments with such varied backgrounds and experiences?
Simple: Their (shared) goals.
Define people not by what they are, but what they do.
What is common between these burgeoning segments is their capacity to shape the future.
They are the emerging leaders of today, the future leaders of tomorrow, and at nearly 40% of practicing certificate holders, they are the largest collective segment of the Queensland legal profession.
The establishment of the QLS Future Leaders Committee is a monumental opportunity for the future leaders of tomorrow, to help us create a better future for tomorrow.
I urge those of you who are eligible to nominate to give serious thought to the role you want to play in shaping the future of the legal profession and nominate to join the Future Leaders Committee. Find out more here
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