Pro Bono Week 2022

PRO BONO

Pro Bono Week 2022

Pro Bono Week takes place this year from 7 to 11 November 2022. It is an opportunity to celebrate and discuss how lawyers can volunteer their legal help for free to those in need.

This year one of the key themes will be to showcase and debate how lawyers can respond to crises and emergencies with pro bono help. The cost-of-living crisis is the focus of the official launch event on the evening 7 November, which includes online presentations on the state of the crisis facing the public, whilst offering examples of pro bono help aimed at responding to the need.

An example of such a response is the cost-of-living clinic that Hogan Lovells launched this year in partnership with local charities, to provide pro bono legal help to those struggling as food and fuel prices surge.

Another project launched this year on a collaborate basis by a number of law firms was the Domestic Abuse Response Alliance (DARA). Travers Smith, Beck Fitzgerald, Debevoise & Plimpton, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, Hogan Lovells, Latham & Watkins, Reed Smith and Slaughter and May teamed up to provide pro bono legal advice and representation to survivors of domestic abuse in need of protective injunctions.

Barristers too can assist on DARA cases. More broadly, barristers have this year continued to provide pro bono help across England and Wales. Advocate, the Bar’s pro bono charity, introduced a scheme entitled “25 for 25: The Pro Bono Challenge” to mark its 25th anniversary, and to celebrate the pro bono work happening at the Bar. Advocate have released data showing that 356 barristers from 126 Chambers across England and Wales completed the Challenge, giving an outstanding 15,434 hours of pro bono time. More broadly, figures released by the Bar Council show that across the Bar, 4,618 barristers carried out some pro bono work in the last year.

Wider afield, the legal profession has during 2022 been involved in helping respond to international crises. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Ukraine Advice Project was established to give UK lawyers the opportunity to support those fleeing the war in Ukraine and saw more than 600 immigration specialists volunteering pro bono to help over 4,000 people seeking refuge in the UK.

During Pro Bono Week events will showcase and discuss the following additional themes:

The climate crisis is real; what can lawyers do?

Following COP 26 the desire of many lawyers to tackle climate change is growing. Broad issues include pro bono schemes incorporating a net zero strategy, the voice of the community and the powerful interventions that can happen when clients and in-house teams are involved.

How to make the business case for pro bono:

Events in 2021 underlined the value of pro bono within recruitment and retention, to enhance lawyers’ skillsets and to enable lawyers to make a difference through the law. Law firms and chambers will highlight the impact of their pro bono work and share best practice in pro bono.

Can remote volunteering truly overcome geographical distance?

Many lawyers appreciate remote volunteering, but organisations also stress the importance of going to where community need is located. Discussions will consider what a creative and strategic blend of remote and in-person support looks like.

Pro bono; an ally of funded advice:

Coordinating pro bono so that it works seamlessly alongside funded legal help can be more effective than a solely pro bono intervention. This year the sector will showcase examples where mixed interventions have had a positive impact.

Specialisation; can lawyers be trained to meet the most urgent needs?

Meeting the most urgent legal needs in our communities is a top priority, especially during the cost-ofliving crisis, but the skillset of lawyers with capacity to do pro bono work often does not match the area of need. The question will be posed whether secondary specialisation and investing in increasing supervisory capacity address these issues.

For those interested in attending these events during Pro Bono Week, more details can be found at: https://probonoweek.org.uk.

The Week is also an opportunity for individual lawyers, firms, or chambers to sign up to volunteer through one of the profession’s charities, for example LawWorks, Pro Bono Connect and Advocate.

Equally, Pro Bono Week is a chance to talk about pro bono on social media, such as the motivations of why lawyers volunteer, or the business benefits of pro bono. The hashtags are #ProBonoWeek and #WeDoProBono

As the Chair of the Organising Committee which includes various pro bono charities, can I conclude by not simply encouraging you to get involved in Pro Bono Week, but to thank you as members of the profession for volunteering on a pro bono basis, at a time when the need for help could not be greater.

Toby Brown

Toby Brown

Barrister, South Square; Chair, Pro Bono Week, UK organising committee