STEP celebrates exceptional student achievement

Wednesday, 21 July 2021

STEP is delighted to announce the winners of this year’s Excellence Awards, which celebrate exceptional student achievement, recognising the highest achievers across all STEP qualifications globally.

The 49 winners hail from all over the world, representing 16 countries: Barbados, Bermuda, BVI, Canada, Cayman Islands, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Isle of Man, Jersey, Malta, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland, UK and the US.

STEP’s qualifications are widely recognised as the benchmark for the private client and wealth planning industry globally and are taken by accountants, lawyers, trustees, bankers and others to demonstrate their specialist knowledge and expertise. STEP’s courses can be taken as part of the exam route to full membership of STEP, denoted by the prestigious ‘TEP’ designation recognised and respected by employers, regulators and clients across the world. 

The Awards recognise the top-scoring student at distinction level per STEP exam or assignment, plus the highest-scoring graduates across each of the STEP Diplomas.

‘Our congratulations to all of the winners,’ Mark Walley, STEP’s Chief Executive, said. ‘Education is at the heart of STEP and the Awards align with our core focus on promoting high standards and professional excellence. It’s a real privilege to be able to recognise the outstanding talent and commitment shown by these individuals.’

Kai Fung Calvin Lo of Stevenson, Wong in Hong Kong was the highest scoring graduate of the STEP Diploma in International Trust Management. He said, ‘The STEP Diploma course provided me with a comprehensive package of legal knowledge and industry insights, which is invaluable in my practice. It provides me with the recognition from the profession as a specialist in my practice areas, which is advantageous when interacting with clients and other professionals.’

Nine of this year’s winners worked for firms that are accredited on STEP’s Employer Partnership Programme: a mark of quality for trusts and estates businesses, signalling their commitment to developing the skills and talents of their people. Scottish law firm Anderson Strathern, a Platinum Employer Partner, has consistently seen its employees recognised in these Awards in recent years. They said: ‘We are involved with STEP because it is the premier professional body representing private client law practitioners. We require all of our private client solicitors to be qualified to STEP Diploma level and find the course of study to be very thorough. As a Gold Investor in People we are committed to developing our solicitors in line with best practice, and the STEP Diploma contributes to that.’

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For further information please contact Louise Polcaro on +44 (0)20 3752 3750 communications@step.org.

STEP is the global professional association for practitioners who specialise in family inheritance and succession planning. STEP works to improve public understanding of the issues families face in this area and promotes education and high professional standards among its members. STEP members help families plan for their futures, from drafting wills to issues surrounding international families, protection of the vulnerable, family businesses and philanthropic giving. Full STEP members, known as TEPs, are internationally recognised as experts in their field, with proven qualifications and experience.

Find out more at www.step.org.