YESTERDAY marked the start of the sixth National Pro Bono Week.
Originally launched to celebrate the range and impact of pro bono activity undertaken by lawyers, this year the focus is on international pro bono and law students' involvement in pro bono projects.
Solicitors, barristers, legal executives, law students and other professionals regularly give free advice to meet unmet need, at law centres and clinics across England and Wales.
In the past twelve months, solicitors in private practice alone have given £338 million worth of free advice – not including the contribution made by in-house solicitors and other legal professionals including barristers and legal executives.
Andrew Holroyd, Law Society President and partner at Jackson & Canter, said: “This week celebrates the remarkable amount of pro bono work undertaken by all parts of the profession, from law students through to senior partners. The common feature in National Pro Bono Week is the willingness of lawyers put something back into the community.
“It also highlights the tremendous amount of support available for members of the legal profession who are interested in getting involved in pro bono work.
“The website, www.probonouk.net, is an excellent source of information on accessing free legal advice. It is important to remember that pro bono is not a replacement for a legal aid system adequately funded by Government.�
Alexandra Marks, partner at Linklaters and National Chair of ProHelp, said: "Pro bono support is a lifeline for many community and charitable organisations who simply cannot afford to pay for professional services.
“The majority of firms don't publicise their pro bono work, so National Pro Bono Week is essential to help raise awareness of their collaborative work - free of charge - for the benefit of communities across the UK. In turn, we hope to raise awareness by voluntary groups that this support is available to them and, of course, we aim to encourage other professional firms to get involved too."
Thousands of hours of professional pro-bono support are given by businesses each year, many of these through Business in the Community’s ProHelp programme.
Regionally, there are thirteen businesses supporting local communities and voluntary organisations in the Merseyside area, including Weightmans, Quinn Barrow and Brabners Chaffe Street from the legal sector.
Stephen Brodie, partner at Brabners and chair of the Merseyside ProHelp board said “For many years Brabners Chaffe Street has been a member of and supported Mersyside Pro-Help.
“Our membership has enabled us to undertake pro-bono work for local community based organisations in the not for profit sector which would not otherwise have the financial means to
access legal assistance.
“The projects have been varied and interesting and have given us the opportunity to give something back to the Merseyside community.�
Established in 1989 by Business in the Community, ProHelp is committed to ensuring that time and expertise given for free by businesses is used efficiently and effectively to maximise impact on local communities in need.
Merseyside ProHelp is holding a networking event tonight (Tuesday) at the Liverpool Daily Post & Echo Building between 6pm and 8pm, open to both professionals and community organisations. To attend contact Alison Gibney on 0151 706 9501 or email Alison.gibney@bitc.org.uk.