About the BCLI Mathew Good Memorial Prize

The British Columbia Law Institute (BCLI), with the support of Canadian Bar Association, British Columbia (CBABC), is pleased to announce the first annual BCLI Mathew Good Memorial Prize essay contest. The annual contest awards a prize of $1,000 to an outstanding essay written by a British Columbia law school student. The contest is sponsored by the Law Foundation of British Columbia.

This prize is presented by BCLI in memory of Mathew Good, a former BCLI board member and CBABC member. Mat was a brilliant lawyer who practiced commercial litigation and class actions with Good Barrister in Vancouver. He was a prolific volunteer in the legal profession and demonstrated a deep commitment to supporting legal education and to advancing access to justice. Beyond excelling in the law, Mat’s proudest achievement was his family – being a husband to Claire Hunter, K.C. and a father to their two children, Zoë and Olin. Mat passed away on April 27, 2023, at the age of 37, nine months after being diagnosed with cancer.

Eligibility

All current full-time or part-time students enrolled at a British Columbia law school for the fall 2024 semester and/or spring 2025 semester will be eligible to enter.

Submission Information

Submissions must follow the below guidelines:

  • Submissions should address issues related to access to justice and law reform. We welcome papers that discuss how the law can be improved, modernized, developed or reformed from the perspective of any practice area or discipline.
  • Papers must be in English.
  • Papers must be between 2,500 and 5,000 words (not including citations).
  • Papers must be appropriately referenced. All referencing methods in the legal field will be accepted.
  • Papers must be introduced by a separate document indicating the title of the essay and the author’s name, law school affiliation and year, and contact information (including email address), together with a statement attesting that the author meets the eligibility criteria and that the essay is unpublished. The author’s name, affiliation, or any identifying information must not appear on the paper itself.
  • Papers must be typed and submitted in electronic form (.docx, .doc, or .rtf format but not pdf).
  • Submissions must be researched and written by one author and must be the author’s own original work. Content produced by AI will not be considered original work. Plagiarism is not tolerated in any form. Papers that have been previously published in any academic journals or accepted for publication are not eligible. Papers written in the context of a course or written specifically for this contest will be accepted. We encourage students to be selective and only submit papers of significant quality.

Submissions are to be emailed to [email protected] with the subject line of “Mathew Good Memorial Prize Submission”.

Note that in taking part in this competition, participants grant BCLI and CBABC the non-exclusive right to reproduce, publish and use their paper or excerpts therefrom. Participants also authorize BCLI and CBABC to make minor revisions that BCLI and CBABC may judge necessary for the purpose of such publication.

Submission Deadline

May 2, 2025 (11:59 pm PST). Entries received after the deadline will not be considered.

Judging

The winning paper will be selected by a judging panel, which will include Claire Hunter, K.C., a BCLI board member, a BCLI staff lawyer, and a CBABC member.

The evaluation of submissions will be based on compliance with the contest rules and the following criteria:

i. Quality of argument, including depth of research and analysis;
ii. Readability, including organization, tone, and clarity; and
iii. Impact, including persuasiveness, theoretical or practical value, and originality.

Prize

The winner will receive a cash prize of $1,000, generously funded by the Law Foundation of BC. The winner will be notified in June 2025, and the winning paper will be eligible for publication on BCLI’s website and in an upcoming publication of BarTalk by the CBABC.

Contact

All questions or requests for information can be directed to:

British Columbia Law Institute
Phone: 604-822-0142
E-mail: [email protected]