Flinders graduate and Associate of Finlaysons, Paul Gordon, has been named joint winner of the South Australian Gray Young Lawyer of the Year award.

Mr Gordon (pictured, right) and Stephen Mitchell (pictured, left) were presented with the honour, which recognises their outstanding contributions to the legal profession and the community, at the Law Society of South Australia’s 2013 Young Lawyers’ Ball on Friday night.

A winner of no fewer than 14 University prizes, including the University Medal, Mr Gordon graduated with Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice and Bachelor of Commerce degrees in 2009.

As an Associate to Justice White at the Supreme Court, Mr Gordon was instrumental in assisting the reform of the system for submitting and hyperlinking lists of authorities.

His work in Finlaysons’ corporate and commercial group focuses on intellectual property (IP) and technology, with an interest in social media and online law, commercialisation of new technologies, and dispute resolution in trade mark, copyright and patent matters.

The award citation noted that Mr Gordon “actively conjures ideas to promote the firm’s practice and has brought in several significant clients”.

“Paul is actively involved in numerous mentoring programs – formally and informally,” the citation read.

“He drafted the firm’s pro bono policy which he successfully lobbied to the CEO and managing board.

“He now sits on that committee and has helped establish the systems.”

In October last year, Mr Gordon was elected as a Junior Member of the Council of the Law Society of South Australia.

He is also on the board of the Adelaide Hebrew Congregation and co-founded Dramatix Pty Ltd, an innovative service providing ticketing to theatre, comedy and music events, as well as conferences and conventions throughout Australia.

As a thought leader on IP, Mr Gordon presents seminars to the legal and business community and has been asked to speak on social media issues by industry and radio.

Dean of Flinders Law School, Professor Kim Economides said the School was “delighted at this recognition and proud of Paul’s achievement”.

“It reflects very well on Flinders Law School and demonstrates that we are producing well-rounded, enterprising lawyers who are able to contribute to society,” Professor Economides said.

“I am especially pleased to see that Paul’s contributions span commercial, religious, artistic and pro bono activity and that these impact widely on so many sectors of our community,” he said.

“Paul is a fine ambassador for Flinders and without doubt a model citizen.”

The Gray South Australian Young Lawyer of the Year award was founded by The Hon Justice Gray and is run by the Law Society of SA’s Young Lawyers Committee.