Sheila Lesley Volunteer of the Year Award

Ese has worked for British American Tobacco (BAT) as a Trade Mark and Marketing Counsel since 2019. She has also been a member of CITMA Council since 2018 and joined the IP Inclusive management team as a non-executive last year.  

She explained why it’s important to her to give back to the IP community through these roles, “I think it’s more that it wasn’t there for me when I was starting out. You’re just in the dark, trying to find a way forward. I think it would have been so helpful if there were people like me, ahead of me.”  

She added, “So now I’m in a place where I can give that to other people, I do – to try and make other people’s career path a lot smoother than mine.” 

In addition to sitting on council and supporting IP Inclusive, the judges noted Ese’s strong dedication to mentoring and helping fellow members, describing her efforts as “giving the extra”. 

As well as being a rewarding experience, Ese feels working with organisations like IP Inclusive, that focus on diversity and inclusivity, is a great opportunity to provide input and help shape the future of the profession.  

She said, “When I started out, there were not people like me in front of me to look at as an inspiration. To say that the profession seems more open now because there's someone like me – and CITMA gives me the opportunity to do that – I think it’s fantastic.” 

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The award judges noted Azhar’s continuous engagement with, and commitment to, the profession, as well as his thought leadership through his “transformative” work as Chair of the CITMA AI and Technology Committee.

Earlier in 2025 we published a new report exploring AI’s impact on the profession, including both the opportunities and challenges that come with the introduction of new technologies. Steered by the CITMA AI Task Force (now the CITMA AI and Technology Committee) with Azhar at the helm, this has become an invaluable piece of work, providing essential support and guidance to the industry.

In reference to the report, one judge commented, “This is exactly what our profession needs to show we are ahead of the curve.”

Azhar is keen to share his accolade with fellow committee and task force members, stating that he “definitely wouldn’t” have got this award if it wasn’t for them, “This is recognition for everybody who's worked on that [AI report] and everybody who's contributed from an AI point of view over the years.”

Azhar credits important figures who have supported him throughout his career. One of his earliest influences was Roy Scott, a Senior Paralegal at Keltie LLP, who played a key role in the development of the CITMA Paralegal Course.

“I think I was lucky to always have people around me that acted as my mentors, whether it was directly or indirectly. I also think it is crucial that professionals, at any stage in their career, from new entrant to CEOs always have a trusted mentor they can turn to."

He adds, “It helps validate and ground decisions on good reasoning, whilst encouraging honest feedback and personal growth that can often be lost when things get busy.”

With the pace at which technology is evolving, Azhar believes mentorship will become even more crucial, “Law firms have targets they need to meet to be sustainable, often they are unrealistic or unachievable – the only way to change this is by flipping that model to remove this burnout angle,” he continues, “and that will be helped by AI. But it will also be helped by educating individuals on how to be more actively productive.

“You cannot bill 14 hours in an 8-hour working day and burnout should categorically not be made a badge of honour or requirement for progression. Those sorts of approaches need to be phased out.”

For Azhar, this is the most important aspect of the committee’s work: supporting new entrants to train differently, with technology at their side.

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Ernie has over 10 years industry experience and currently works as a Brand Protection Manager for Erastone Ltd providing support and expertise in combatting online IP infringement and helping brands mitigate the risk of counterfeit goods affecting their businesses.
 
Ernie is a Part Qualified Trade Mark Attorney who studied English Language at undergraduate level before taking a Master's degree in International Intellectual Property Law. He then went on to study the Postgraduate Certificate in Trade Mark Law and Practice at Queen Mary, University of London before beginning his professional career in IP. 

Barbara is a Trade Mark and Domain Name paralegal at Rolls-Royce plc with over 29 years of experience in trade mark matters, including domain names and industrial designs.

During her career she has worked in private practice as well as an in-house paralegal in the UK and Switzerland. She has worked for various multi-national companies such as Philip Morris, Kraft Foods, Mondelez International and Rolls-Royce plc covering all aspects of paralegal work. Her working languages are English, German and some French.

Barbara qualified as a CITMA paralegal in 2015.

Robert leads an amazing trade marks team at Appleyard Lees. He currently sits on CITMA’s Paralegal Committee and enjoys writing for the CITMA Review.

Dewdney is a Chartered Trade Mark Attorney and a non-practising solicitor (South Africa) with extensive experience in trade marks over a 20 year plus career. Renowned for his holistic approach to legal problems, he has particular expertise in music, fashion, financial services, pharmaceuticals and energy.

Dewdney is Head of Brand Protection within the Commercial Dispute Resolution team at Charles Russell Speechlys.

Gayle is currently an IP consultant with Stephenson Harwood LLP.

Throughout her 25 year IP career, Gayle has worked for Camelot Group plc (previous owner of the UK National Lottery), pharmaceutical company GSK, D Young & Co and luxury brands company Richemont International Ltd.

Gayle currently lives in Lymington in Hampshire and during her spare time likes to travel and regularly sings in Rock Choir.

Allister is a Chartered Trade Mark Attorney, with over 17 years’ experience in the field of trade marks. He is a senior associate at Elkington and Fife and joined the firm in August 2018. He covers all aspects of trade mark clearance, prosecution, contentious work, drafting, and pre-litigation. The majority of Allister’s work focuses primarily on contentious matters, i.e. opposition and pre-litigation disputes, including negotiating and drafting settlements.

Allister is a member of the Conference Working Group and the UKIPO Transformation Programme Working Group, regularly supports the CITMA Advice Clinics, and has written numerous articles for the CITMA Review.

Carly is a Senior Chartered Paralegal and Technical Work Flow Specialist.

She has vast experience on all aspects of trade marks.

Carly qualified as a CITMA Paralegal in 2005 and is a committee member of the CITMA Paralegal Course working group.

Drawing on a wealth of over 20 years’ experience, Lucy advises her diverse client base on a wide range of trade mark matters.  Lucy’s passion for IP goes further than her day-to-day work.  Lucy is responsible for the management of Barker Brettell’s Renewals Department. 

Lucy is also the equality, inclusivity and diversity officer where she is championing the Firm’s ethos of being truly committed to providing a supportive, thriving working environment that respects and values each individual employee regardless of their background and experience.  As part of this, she has also taken on the responsibility of the firm’s social committee to improve the social environment in the workplace.

Lucy is committed to furthering the education of those looking at careers in Intellectual Property.  Lucy lectures on various undergraduate and postgraduate university courses.  She is also an active member of CITMA’s Paralegal Education Team, acting as a lecturer on the course, participating in the working group and she is an official examiner. Lucy is also a member of CITMA’s Education Working Group for trade mark attorneys.

Charlotte is a Chartered Trade Mark Attorney with 15+ years experience, having entered the profession in 2008.

Charlotte spent 12 years at Keltie, taking some time out to head up trade mark practices elsewhere, before rejoining in 2023.

Having a keen interest in developing the careers of young attorneys and education within the profession, Charlotte is actively involved in the CITMA Review and is a member of INTA’s Publication Committee, as well as previously being a member of INTA’s Young Practitioners Committee.