Why pro bono?

PRO BONO

Why pro bono?

The theme of this issue of Central London Lawyer is pro bono. This ties in with the annual National Pro Bono week that took place from 7-11 November.

WHLS has a strong commitment to supporting pro bono legal services. The WHLS pro bono committee has representatives from a variety of law firms, in-house legal teams and pro bono charities. That commitment is underlined by inviting me to be the guest editor for this pro bono edition. If you would like to hear more about our work please email cwhlawsoc@gmail.com.

I want to talk about some of the personal and business benefits of taking on pro bono work and address some barriers to greater participation. There are many motivations to work pro bono, all are legitimate and ultimately what matters is the level of service provided to those who need legal support, rather than why their lawyer is doing it.

It’s sometime hard to define exactly what we mean by pro bono legal work. Much takes place unrecorded and outside formal schemes. I think a wide definition helps, which takes in the provision of any legal services without charge to the client.

We should celebrate the range and size of pro bono work that takes place. For example, in 2020 9,000 volunteers helped a staggering 43,000 people in the Lawworks clinic network. High street law firms have always offered services to those in need without charge, fuss and recognition. Leading law firms support many formal partnerships and can take pro bono strategic litigation at a national or international level.

In my day to day work I see volunteer lawyers driven entirely by altruism – a commitment to put themselves out just in recognition of the fact that they can make a difference to someone else’s life. That is a powerful driver whether the lawyer is starting out with strong ideals about using the law to improve society, or more experienced and simply wanting to put something back into a society from a comfortable position.

The legal sector has traditionally had a perceived professional and moral duty to undertake pro bono work because of its specialist knowledge and skills and special place in gatekeeping access to justice. Changes to the profession, funding for legal services and wider society perhaps mean that it is unfair to rely on moral duty to drive pro bono.

Comprehensive data is difficult to find on levels of pro bono activity by lawyers, but it’s clear that there is huge scope for more lawyers to get involved. Barriers to greater participation in pro bono work might include:

A reluctance to be seen to be replacing services that no longer receive public funding

A perceived lack of knowledge in areas of law that might be useful to clients who need pro bono help

A lack of time amid challenging billable hours targets

A lack of knowledge of suitable opportunities

A perception of regulatory barriers or risks to undertaking pro bono work

Fortunately, many practical barriers to involvement in this list can be addressed by helpful resources published by, amongst others the Law Society, the SRA and Lawworks (links are provided at the end of this article).

Training and support are available for lawyers who would like to contribute outside their legal practice area, there are directories of available opportunities and in every area of law, however niche, someone who can’t afford it needs advice. For those law firms or in-house teams that don’t organise pro bono there are resources to help get you started.

Perhaps other perceived barriers can be addressed by thinking about pro bono differently. I have no problem working with lawyers who have a more instrumental driver than altruism for their pro bono work. There are many benefits to the lawyer from pro bono. If the lawyer is aware of them that is healthy, and hopefully motivates them to do the best for their client.

Pro bono can be an excellent way to develop a lawyer’s career. FRU works with lawyers who wish to try new areas of law, sometimes because their current practice areas no longer pay sufficiently. Undertaking pro bono work in a supervised setting is a safe way to gain new skills and knowledge. Commercial awareness can be developed through a range of pro bono activities. One of the key roles of the voluntary sector is to identify and fill gaps in current provision, and as an independent voice to challenge the status quo on behalf of people who have been excluded. Pro bono activity can go into brand new areas of need as they develop, as a pathfinder to new commercial opportunities.

It is also clear that whatever the motivation of the lawyer, undertaking pro bono activity is beneficial to their emotional well-being. The buzz of making a significant difference to someone’s life by using your skills is hard to beat, even if you did it for your CV. It has even been linked to improving depression and addressing career torpor.

There are sound business reasons for law firms to prioritise pro bono work. For example, the article by Scott Miller on page 32 demonstrates how his management, interpersonal and legal skills were developed in ways that he simply couldn’t get from his other training seats.

I would urge all those WHLS members reading this edition of Central London Lawyer to consider how they can get involved in pro bono legal work, at whatever level. There will be a clinic, scheme or organisation that could benefit hugely from your skills and knowledge, and you will benefit even if that isn’t your motivation.

David Abbott

David Abbott is the chief executive of the Free Representation Unit, a pro bono and clinical legal education charity.

Useful resource links

www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/pro-bono/pro-bono-manual

www.lawworks.org.uk/solicitors-and-volunteers/get-involved

www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/resources/waivers/waiveremployment-status-pro-bono-work/