![]() ![]() Pro bono is also an important recruitment and retention tool, both at trainee level and with lateral hires. How does pro bono work benefit law firms? Group involvement on a project can improve teamwork and collaboration skills, while lawyers can also develop leadership skills by getting involved with the organisation and co-ordination of larger projects. Pro bono provides lawyers with the opportunity to develop their legal skills, sometimes in a new area of law, as well as essential soft skills, such as client interviewing. ![]() Beyond simply doing their own pro bono work, law firms frequently extend pro bono opportunities to in-house lawyers, both increasing pro bono opportunities for in-house counsel and giving the firm’s pro bono clients access to valuable skills, knowledge and personnel from the wider legal sector.Īt Baker McKenzie, a number of the firm’s commercial clients have been involved in developing the Street Atlas, while others have co-delivered key legal training to the firm’s charity clients. Pro bono is an opportunity to showcase a firm’s commitment to justice in front of its commercial clients, many of whom use this as a key metric when deciding which law firms to instruct. Look good and learn vital skills with pro bono work A signature example of this has been the firm’s work on The Legal Atlas for Street Children, documenting the rights of street children in each jurisdiction, to inform child rights advocates, policy makers and children themselves around the world. īaker McKenzie’s pro bono efforts extend beyond the UK, with numerous offices involved in projects around the globe. The firm also operates a Know Your Rights series of workshops at Thameside Prison, in partnership with the charity Catch 22, and through an online queries platform run by Working Families, assists individuals who have had their employment rights infringed. ![]() The firm has set up legal projects in the areas of children’s nationality, social care and welfare benefits, to help clients assert the rights to which they are entitled but may not have the means to enforce themselves. In addition to the day-to-day organisational support the firm provides to its charity clients, Baker McKenzie has grown its programme assisting individuals unable to access legal services. Access to the high-quality legal skills available at a law firm can make a huge difference to pro bono clients, both decreasing their exposure to risk and helping them obtain successful results in their legal matters. If lawyers wish to give back to the communities in which they operate, then using their expert knowledge is the best way of doing this. The trend in City law firms’ commitment to access justice is encouraging, with most firms now recognising the importance of hiring full-time lawyers to manage their pro bono practices, in order to ensure their pro bono work is strategic and impactful.Īt Baker McKenzie we believe that pro bono is the right thing to do and upholding justice part of our professional obligation. While the former allows charities to save money on legal spend and direct it towards their frontline services, the latter allows more vulnerable individuals to gain access to justice which they would otherwise be denied. Every year lawyers from across the UK provide thousands of hours of free legal advice to charities and those who can’t afford legal advice as part of their pro bono practices. ![]()
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