#TransformLaw KWM Prize
Your chance to win $10,000
-
10 August – 5 October
2021 -
Registrations closed for this year -
UQ undergraduate students
The 2021 #TransformLaw Competition is now over. Read about the winning team's solution online.
UQ Law School and UQ Ventures, in partnership with King & Wood Mallesons, are calling on UQ undergraduate students from all disciplines to team up to develop innovative proposals that use technology to solve a problem in legal practice (think topics like access to justice, cybersecurity and automation).
About the competition
10 August 2021 - 5 October 2021
#TransformLaw KWM Prize is so much more than a competition, it’s a unique opportunity to get exposure to the world of entrepreneurship and gain skills that will serve you throughout your degree and career.
Here's how it works:
1. Team up
Join a team of 2-4 UQ undergraduate students, including at least one LLB student and one non-law student. Don't worry if you don't have a team, as we can match you with other participants.
2. Learn to be an entrepreneur
Participate in a series of hands-on workshops run by UQ Ventures and industry mentors to learn the tools and frameworks to think like an entrepreneur and develop your proposal.
3. Pitch your idea
If your proposal is shortlisted in the top five, you'll be invited to present to a panel of judges made up of academic and industry experts. If you win, your team will receive $10,000!
Mentors
As part of the program, you will be mentored by a selection of high-calibre legal, tech and business experts. Examples from previous competition rounds include:
- Yaw-Hsien (Shen) Chow - Principal Lawyer, YHC Lawyers
- Nimrod Klayman - Head of UQ Ventures and Serial Founder
- Iain McGregor-Lowndes - Queensland Executive, The Legal Forecast and Lawyer
- Angus Murray - Co-founder and Director, The Legal Forecast and partner, Irish Bentley Lawyers
- Andrea Perry-Petersen - Founder, Consultant and 2019 Innovation in Law award winner
- Akaash Singh - Queensland President, The Legal Forecast and Lawyer at Allens
- Ryan Catterwell - Lecturer (UQ Law School) and Consultant (King & Wood Mallesons)
- Samantha Garbutt – Chief Commercial Officer, 3 Dot Digital
- Chad Hardy – Experienced Founder, Chief Operations Officer, Bookipi
- Nick Camphin – Associate, HWL Ebsworth Lawyers
- Nicholas Therkelsen-Terry – Co-founder and CEO, Max Kelsen
- Dion McCurdy – Adjunct Associate Lecturer (UQ School of Political Science & International Studies, Co-founder and CEO, New Vote
- Sarina Eggers – Founder and Managing Director, Business Kitz
- Anita Siek – Founder and Director, Wordfetti
“Meeting our mentors and learning from their insights and specialised knowledge of the industry was an invaluable experience... We left each mini interview with more knowledge, direction and insight than we could have possibly derived on our own.”
Abinaya Ketheeswaran, 2020 KWM Prize Winner
Program outline
| Date and time | Session | What you'll be doing |
|---|---|---|
|
5–7pm, 10 Aug |
Session 1 Date night and User identification |
Brainstorm to identify users whose lives could be improved by innovation in law and regulation. Plus, take part in a bunch of activities to meet your teammates. |
| Inspiration: the purpose of the first part of the program is to understand the user of your product/service, what design challenge you are facing and your team member roles. | ||
|
5–7pm, 17 Aug |
Session 2
|
Learn the human-centred design (HCD) tools needed to effectively interview and obtain insight from users and key stakeholders. |
| Ideation: the purpose of the second session is to brainstorm, choose and define the best solution for the challenge identified in phase one. | ||
|
5–7pm, 24 Aug |
Session 3
|
Brainstorm potential solutions to address the identified challenge and narrow it down to the top three. |
| Implementation and iteration: teams will explore the fit to market of their ideas, prototype their solutions and iterate the process to incorporate lessons into their solution. Teams will also provide an action plan for the team moving forward. | ||
|
5–7pm, 31 Aug |
Session 4 Solution selection, fit to market analysis and business viability. |
Use business model and industry analysis canvas tools to understand the viability of the different solutions from a business and customer perspective. |
|
5–7pm, 7 Sept |
Session 5 Rapid prototyping |
Rapid-prototype the user experience journey (storyboard) for your solution and learn how to create an impactful presentation. |
|
5–7pm, 14 Sept |
Session 6 Mentoring night and pitching practice |
Pitching preparation! Put the final touches on your prototype and develop your pitch with the assistance of Ventures staff and real entrepreneurs. After mentoring night, you will have two weeks (plus mid-sem break) to prepare your pitches for Demo Day. |
|
5–7pm, 5 Oct
|
Session 7 Demo Day |
Present your solution (pitches and prototypes) to a panel of judges. The winning team takes home $10,000. |
Want to know more?
Get the lowdown on the competition in this interview with the 2019 winning team JustAI and mentor Ryan Catterwell. Watch now
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