Associate Professor Jessica Palmer of the Otago University Faculty of Law is a co-recipient of the Carl Smith Medal and Rowheath Trust Award.

The other recipient is Associate Professor Suetonia Palmer of the University's Christchurch Department of Medicine.

The Award and Medal recognise outstanding research performance of early-career staff at Otago and are accompanied by a $5,000 grant for personal scholarly development.

Professor Palmer's research primarily focuses on the areas of trusts and restitution. She was a member of the New Zealand Law Commission reference panel for its recent review of the law of trusts and her work is regularly cited by courts and has been influential on the development of the law in relation to sham trusts and the control of express trusts.