become the first non-American selected Outstanding Member of 1998 by the National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL).

In her second term as secretary general of the International Bar Association (IBA), Ms Kempe has been nominated by the IBA council to serve as vice president and is on track to becoming the first woman president of the IBA.

The prestigious NAWL award is given on the basis of professional achievement, but is not given every year. No other non-American has been presented with the award in the association's 99-year history.

The awards ceremony was held at month's end in Toronto in conjunction with the American Bar Association Annual Meeting.

AS&K said that for decades, NAWL was a singular voice for women in the legal profession and that today it provided a forum for women's issues in the profession. Ms Kempe said she was honoured to receive such an award from an organisaton that "is one of the driving forces in the development of the legal profession.'' Dianna Kempe QC