Value of free legal advice soars to £400m as lawyers step in to help recession-hit needy

5 November 2009

A nationwide campaign to celebrate the range and impact of free services (pro bono) provided by lawyers, often in collaboration with other professionals also acting free, will be launched next week at the start of the eighth National Pro Bono Week.

Solicitors, barristers, legal executives, law students and other professionals regularly give free advice to meet unmet need, in a variety of settings, including law centres and clinics across England and Wales.

In preparation for pro bono week, a series of questions about pro bono work were placed in the latest Law Society Firms Omnibus survey to measure the value of pro bono work being undertaken by solicitors, based on the number and value of chargeable hours.

The estimated value has increased significantly since 2007 from £338m to £399m, - by 17.9 per cent. *

This very significant figure does not include the contribution made by in-house solicitors and other legal professionals including barristers and legal executives, and so the total value of the pro bono work undertaken by lawyers is much higher.

The week will be launched with the Joint National Pro Bono Conference, which aims to harness the enthusiasm and momentum of working together pro bono. The conference provides a forum for everyone and anyone who is interested in pro bono to come together, share ideas, forge new partnerships, reinforce existing ones, and find a way forward on difficult pro bono issues.

The conference will be attended by the leaders of the 3 legal professions, and will include key note speeches from Lord Bach and Lord Goldsmith, QC.

There are more than 100 activities taking place nationwide throughout the week, which demonstrate the range of pro bono services regularly on offer with law firms, law students, community centres and other professionals offering free advice sessions.

Robert Heslett, Law Society President, said: "This week celebrates the exceptional amount of pro bono work undertaken by each strand of the legal profession, who regularly use their professional skills to support individuals and communities with otherwise unmet legal needs. The common feature in National Pro Bono Week is the willingness of lawyers put something back into the community.

"The commitment of lawyers to provide access to justice for the most vulnerable members of our society, who are ineligible for legal aid, remains one of the most influential factors in the decisions of many law firms to establish and or develop pro bono programmes. It must be remembered that pro bono is not a replacement for a legal aid system adequately funded by Government."

The Chairman of the Bar Council, Desmond Browne, QC, said: "The Bar Pro Bono Unit, the Free Representation Unit, and all those who give their time and expertise for free to those who need it most, are an incredibly important part of the Bar’s contribution to the community. Cases such as that featuring Val Compton, a retired physiotherapist who fought, on behalf of her community, against the closure of large parts of her local hospital, are typical of the work carried out on a pro bono basis.

"Four lawyers worked pro bono on this case over the course of two years, spending more than 180 days on a cause which was of huge importance to the community. The contribution of the team, which included Guy Opperman, Mathew Gullick, and Neil Garnham QC, really cannot be quantified. I am very proud of the work done by all those at both Units, which includes members of the Bar and those working behind the scenes."

Institute of Legal Executives President, Judith Gordon-Nichols, said: "This week will highlight many extraordinary stories of individual lawyers from all parts of the profession who have feely given of their time and legal expertise for the benefit and support of the vulnerable and the less fortunate.

"All of us in the legal profession can be justifiably proud of the immense amount of work that is being done across the county under the pro bono banner and of the commitment shown by all those involved to put something back into the community and meet that unmet legal need that still exists in our society today."

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