Sam Hillas KC awarded honorary fellowship

Barrister Sam Hillas KC, Leader of the Northern Circuit, was conferred with an honorary fellowship at LJMU’s summer graduation.

Sam, who specialises in family law with a particular emphasis on financial remedy claims, has been recognised for her outstanding contribution to the law and as a leader in the profession.

Collecting her award at LJMU’s graduation ceremony at Liverpool Cathedral, Sam said: “I am truly humbled to be the recipient of this honour from Liverpool John Moores University."

Addressing the graduating law students, she added: “Your law degree from this university puts you in a very special position. You can do anything you want. But university is not just about the class of degree you end up with. 

“You will have made friends and enjoyed experiences here that will see you through the rest of your lives. Remember these days fondly: real life will come all too soon.”   

Sam is also actively engaged in the world of rugby, having played for a number of years (Saracens, New Brighton and Birkenhead Park) and now sits as a judicial officer for RFU, Six Nations and World Rugby.

Fix your eye on the prize and keep going, whatever twists and turns your life takes.  And if your career plan changes six times before next Tuesday, that's perfectly normal too. Work hard and you will end up exactly where you are meant to be.

Sam Hillas KC

LJMU Chancellor Nisha Katona said: “Sam is an absolute beacon of encouragement to aspiring barristers and solicitors alike. She leads and inspires those rising through the ranks, from the point at which they are thinking of studying law, through traineeship and pupillage and on into practice.

“Sam has the absolutely unique combination of legal and academic excellence combined with being relatable, approachable and representing the dizzying heights of the legal world as a place that is accepting and accessible."

I know many who come from minority backgrounds, with no legal role models within their own social or family groups, who have looked to Sam and felt, with dedication and passion, that all things might be possible for them.

Nisha Katona, LJMU Chancellor

About honorary fellowships at LJMU