Setting up and maintaining a pro bono practice involves making decisions about the roles and structures required to manage the flow of pro bono legal work, both within the firm and with external stakeholders such as clients, community partners and other firms.

The job of managing pro bono within a firm can vary greatly depending on the stage of development of pro bono, and the size of a firm. For larger firms with more advanced pro bono practices, pro bono management can be staffed by large teams with many different roles and responsibilities. Equally, smaller firms may find that a more limited, volunteer-led coordination approach still creates an effective and impactful practice that meets their needs.

This chapter provides an overview of considerations to take into account when planning for a firm’s management of pro bono work. This involves looking at the justifications for having firm-wide management of pro bono work, types of tasks management of pro bono work will involve and the most common roles and job titles used in managing pro bono. The pro bono roles described have also been set out in this chapter in accordance to the different levels of pro bono development.

Note that these are generalised considerations which may vary greatly depending on a firm’s culture, resources and size.

• 1.9.1 Why Manage Pro Bono?
• 1.9.2 General Considerations
• 1.9.3 Management Tasks – What does Pro Bono Management involve?
• 1.9.4 Management Roles for Pro Bono Phases – The ‘who’, ‘how’ and ‘when’ of pro bono management
• 1.9.5 Other Considerations Regarding Pro Bono Management Roles

1.9.1 WHY MANAGE PRO BONO?

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When establishing pro bono as part of a firm’s practice, it may not be apparent why you’ll need to have a means to manage your pro bono offering. However, there are many benefits to management including:

• strategic planning – it is good to be proactive in determining what kind of pro bono work the firm will undertake. This will ensure you can maximise the impact of your work and minimise risk. A pro bono manager is able to manage the pipeline of pro bono opportunities and ensure the right opportunities are created;

• quality control – having someone responsible for managing the pro bono matters coming into the firm ensures that you have the right pro bono matters for your skills set. This also ensures the pro bono work is delivered to the client to the same high standards as all the firm’s work;

• making it easy to participate – having someone to manage pro bono enables participation by solicitors. If a pro bono matter is managed in the same way as a chargeable matter, it encourages those delivering it to view it in the same way, which helps to ensure regulatory compliance and conformity with the firm’s procedures and practices;

• transparency and reporting – typically law firms will be expected to be transparent about the nature and volume of pro bono work undertaken for the benefit of the community and a manager can manage this. The range of stakeholders who will expect transparency and reporting may include your employees, candidates for graduate/trainee roles, professional associations and clients; and

• sustainability and credibility – Effective management makes a pro bono practice stronger and more sustainable. A practice is more credible if it operates according to robust, structured processes that are aligned with the culture of the firm and its other business processes.

1.9.2 – GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS

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Management encompasses both:

• leadership of the pro bono practice — including responsibility for strategic decisions, projects and relationships, strategic planning, resolving conflicts of interest, promoting the practice internally and the practice’s overall success; and
• day to day management of the pro bono practice — including assessing routine requests for assistance, allocating, monitoring and supervising pro bono legal work, liaising with referral agencies and evaluating the practice.

This section outlines some key considerations as to the development of pro bono management roles in a firm.

FIRM SIZE AND SCALE OF PRO BONO PRACTICES

Management structures vary across large, mid-sized, and small firms, due to the differences in firm culture and in the scale of pro bono practices.

While firms approach pro bono management in various ways, a strong leadership function is the most common feature of management in well-established pro bono practices, and a key indicator of a firm’s commitment to its pro bono practice.^[1]

In large firms with established pro bono practices, the leadership function is often assigned to a partner, special counsel or director, while responsibility for day to day management of the practice rests with other pro bono lawyers and team members. National or international firms often appoint a pro bono leader (known as, for example, Pro Bono Partner, Special Counsel, Director, Manager or Head), one or two pro bono lawyers (sometimes known as Managers), and a pro bono contact (or Manager) in each State.

The results of the Centre’s 2020 National Law Firm Pro Bono Survey showed that out of the 48.7 dedicated full-time equivalent pro bono lawyers reported by 38 respondent firms, 10.4 were partners, 3.6 were special counsel, 12.5  were senior associates, 17.2 were associates/lawyers and 5 were graduates.^[2] Some large firms also appoint a commercial partner with an interest in pro bono to do some general supervision and act as a champion for pro bono. In some firms, assessing and approving significant or sensitive matters is done by a pro bono committee.

In mid-sized and small firms, more often a single person (whether a partner, special counsel or senior associate) will perform both leadership and management functions. In some firms, they may perform the role part-time, balancing pro bono management with commercial practice. As a minimum, there should be a person appointed to manage the intake of pro bono legal work, and if there is more than one office, it is helpful to appoint a local pro bono contact in each office: see What Works, Chapter 8 Tips for planning and maintaining relationships.

In mid-sized firms, appointing a senior pro bono contact in each practice group who can assist with the placement of ad hoc matters or discuss projects helps to maintain visibility over pro bono legal work in the group. Ideally, if a partner in each group is also appointed as a pro bono contact, they can advise on the group’s performance at a strategic level, in view of the firm’s broader objectives. This also enables the partner to be engaged with the pro bono practice without needing to be involved in management or operational issues.

THE PRACTICE OBJECTIVES

The best way for a firm to manage its pro bono practice will also depend on the practice’s strategic objectives (see 1.3.3 Practice objectives).

For example, if one of the strategic objectives is to build stronger support for pro bono across the firm, the management structures might include appointing an influential pro bono partner and several pro bono champions.

MANAGING THE SUPERVISION OF PRO BONO LEGAL WORK

Throughout any pro bono practice, making sure there are appropriate lines of supervision over pro bono legal work is a critical aspect of effective management, just as it is for commercial legal work.

This involves ensuring both the quantity and the quality of the work are consistent with the firm’s pro bono objectives and professional standards.

Monitoring and supervising the quantity of hours worked and the disbursements or expenses incurred ensures that resources are being spent on pro bono legal work appropriately. This is usually done by monitoring contemporaneous records using the firm’s matter management or billing systems. See Chapter 1.13 Evaluation.

Supervising the quality of pro bono legal work ensures it meets the same standards of attention, priority and professional performance as commercial work. For example, each matter should have an allocated supervising partner. Pro bono may also involve supervisory arrangements on top of those applied to the firm’s other work because:

• the nature of the work, the types of legal issues and the processes of pro bono might be unfamiliar to lawyers;
• pro bono clients might not be in a position to query the quality of the legal advice or service being provided; and
• pro bono matters might require expertise from more than one practice group in the firm requiring arrangements between groups and with different partners, which take into account varying capacity and time constraints.

The roles, structures and processes used to supervise pro bono legal work will vary according to the model of pro bono legal assistance adopted.

Casework, for example, will require the supervision of a partner in the firm with relevant expertise. It may also require regular reports to the pro bono manager or committee. See further 2.1.3 Allocation and supervision in relation to casework procedures.

For secondments, although the quality of a secondee’s work is usually supervised by the host organisation, the firm will also need to ensure their work complies with the terms of the secondment and that the arrangement is running well. See further 2.3.5 Supervision, training, support and recognition in relation to secondments.

For clinics, pro bono legal work should be supervised at the clinic and may be checked by supervisors at the firm. This is especially important given the different experiences and cultural differences between the firm and the host organisation. Although clinics are often staffed by lawyers who are considered to be on ‘sessional secondment’, clinic lawyers do not always adjust to the host organisation’s work practices as quickly as long-term secondees would do.

Depending on the clinic model adopted, the firm, rather than the clinic may be on risk. Firms should assign sufficiently experienced lawyers to manage and supervise their clinic teams, and ensure training is provided in the relevant areas of law and in the host organisation’s practices. The pro bono manager should also be prepared to supervise matters as necessary, answer questions, and ensure matters are run properly and returned to the host organisation. Advice about running matters should be sought from the host organisation as needed.

For more information see What Works, Chapter 20 Clinics.

RESOURCING CONSIDERATIONS

Firms have adopted many different resourcing models to effectively manage pro bono. When considering how to resource the pro bono practice, consider the following:

• What level of ambition does the firm have in relation to pro bono?
• Where does the firm wish to position itself in the market?
• Has the firm fallen behind the market, and if so what level of resourcing will be required to catch up?
• Is there a strategy or pro bono targets in place? If so, what level of resourcing is realistically required to achieve those target?
• Does the firm have any thematic priorities which might require specific legal expertise that could be recruited into the pro bono team?
• Will a junior lawyer have the ability to drive cultural change and build a pro bono from a standing start? Who will supervise and train a junior lawyer employed in a pro bono role?
• What level of seniority is appropriate to represent the firm externally, including leading conversations with both pro bono and key commercial clients?
• Will the firm be able to attract a senior/experienced lateral hire pro bono lawyer without ensuring there is adequate administrative support and access to junior associates.
• Has the firm given consideration to the career path for pro bono lawyers, and will the firm provide a path to partnership for pro bono lawyers?
• How will the firm ensure an open recruitment process which supports diverse candidates, and individuals from under-represented groups to access opportunities to work in pro bono roles?

The sections below which set out in more detail management tasks and roles will assist in answering resourcing questions.

1.9.3 MANAGEMENT TASKS – WHAT DOES PRO BONO MANAGEMENT INVOLVE?

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This section provides an overview of the management tasks required in the development and maintenance phases of a pro bono practice. A firm will need to decide how to allocate responsibility for particular tasks between its pro bono committee and pro bono partners, managers or others who are responsible for oversight and administration of the practice.

Management tasks in the emerging or development phase of establishing a pro bono practice include:

• preparing proposals and reports to the leadership on pro bono (including the business case and professional responsibility issues);
• preparing and/or signing off on a pro bono policy and a strategic plan;
• proposing an annual pro bono target and budget;
• communicating and promoting pro bono within the firm;
• surveying current firm activity, areas of interest, expertise and contacts;
• developing procedures, guidelines and precedents;
• integrating systems for matter management, time recording and accounting on pro bono matters with the firm’s existing systems (for example, crediting time);
• establishing relationships with Referral Organisations, legal and community groups and not-for-profit associations to ascertain their needs, develop priorities and identify sources of pro bono matters;
• identifying and developing pro bono opportunities for different practice groups in the firm and for different levels of lawyers in the firm;
• developing strong communication channels with the business units in the firm (such as human resources and finance); and
• preparing standardised wording in relation to the pro bono practice that can be used in tenders and promotional materials.

Note that smaller pro bono practices will not necessarily need to undertake all these tasks.

Management tasks for maintaining practices may include:

• liaising and developing relationships with external agencies (such as community legal centres and Legal Aid Commissions) to maintain sources of work and investigate new sources;
• liaising with other firms or pro bono providers (such as barristers) to investigate opportunities for joint projects or training;
• resolving conflicts of interest;
• publicising and promoting pro bono legal work within the firm (for example, through material in firm newsletters, intranet or bulletins; organising seminars and/or presentations by organisations and others in need of pro bono services; email reports advertising pro bono opportunities; meeting with partners, team/division heads);
• preparing information and marketing material for the firm’s website, social media presence and other publications;
• developing pro bono projects and opportunities, including:
  • developing opportunities for participation by all at the firm; and
  • exploring and organising opportunities for ‘external’ pro bono (for example, secondments, participation in community legal centre advice clinics)
• receiving, screening and processing pro bono requests from within the firm and from external sources (this may include decisions about costs, disbursements, conflict checks, extent of the work to be done and other matters) and allocating work within the firm;
• ensuring that the firm’s pro bono policy and procedures are implemented and periodically reviewed, revised and improved;
• monitoring and evaluating the practice, including:
  • records of all pro bono legal work being handled in the firm
  • resources being allocated to matters (in some firms, this would include monitoring regular billing of pro bono matters)
  • interests and expertise in the firm
  • levels of participation within the firm
  • performance (against the pro bono target and budget); and
  • periodic evaluation of the practice or particular matters/projects
• collecting and maintaining data about requests, refusals, approvals, time and other resources allocated to pro bono;
• reporting to the firm (as appropriate, having regard to firm management structures) on a periodic basis on specific matters which might include:
  • whether the firm’s objectives for the delivery of pro bono services have been fulfilled, for example, the annual target;
  • the resources allocated to pro bono legal work over the reporting period as well as any income from the practice by way of costs awards;
  • the kinds of services provided and to whom they were provided;
  • the number of lawyers and non-lawyers participating in the practice;
  • a description of projects and tasks completed by the manager or committee or partner to promote and encourage pro bono and anticipated projects and tasks; and
  • recommendations about future targets and budgets, and other changes to the pro bono practice;
• undertaking pro bono legal work for clients, and/or supervising and/or assisting others in the firm handling pro bono matters;
• developing projects for vacation clerks;
• developing the firm’s library and IT resources in specific areas of law;
• organising training for particular pro bono activities and encouraging individuals to attend training practices;
• liaising with, providing support to and receiving feedback from secondees and/or from participants in other projects; and
• participating in promoting pro bono legal work to the legal community and more generally.

Effective management makes a pro bono practice stronger and more sustainable. A practice is more credible if it operates according to robust, structured processes that are aligned with the culture of the firm and its other business processes.

Effective management generally involves:

• demonstrating strong and energetic leadership;
• generating pro bono legal work or organising pro bono projects;
• assessing, approving and allocating pro bono legal work;
• ensuring appropriate lines of supervision of the work are in place;
• building an understanding of and a respect for community and public interest law;
• investing significantly in internal and external relationships and networks; and
• forging strong links between the pro bono practice and the firm’s business units (such as human resources and finance).

1.9.4 MANAGEMENT ROLES FOR PRO BONO PHASES – THE ‘WHO’, ‘HOW’ AND ‘WHEN’ OF PRO BONO MANAGEMENT

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This section sets out an overview of the different pro bono management roles that can be engaged in different phases of developing a pro bono practice, namely that of:

• the emerging phase of pro bono;
• the developing phase of pro bono; and
• the established phase of pro bono.

1.9.4.1 EMERGING PHASE OF PRO BONO

As a firm starts to develop a pro bono practice, you may wish to form a pro bono committee comprised of lawyers of all levels. In smaller firms, pro bono may be managed by a solicitor on an ad hoc basis and as an add-on to their main role, but it is still important they get buy-in from the rest of the firm, in order for one individual’s passion to turn into a firm-wide practice. Typically, larger firms with more than 100 lawyers will require a dedicated part-time or full-time pro bono lawyer/manager in order to generate and manage the pro bono practice.

Emerging phase

Role	Core components	Responsibilities
Pro bono committee	Typically, committees will be a mix of partners and lawyers from across different practice areas. This will be a voluntary role. Where a smaller firm finds this requires too much manpower, they might instead have points of contact (as senior as possible) in different teams so the pro bono manager can approach those people with requests and to check team capacity. Calls for expressions of interest for committee membership should make it clear that it involves policy and administration, rather than actually doing the pro bono legal work.	Encourage and facilitate broad participation of the pro bono practice. Create a pro bono policy. Create a volunteer handbook. Review each pro bono request and accept/refuse the request..
Pro bono manager	A lawyer with an interest in pro bono. For smaller firms this role will typically be taken on as an ad hoc role in addition to their main role in the firm. This will usually be a voluntary role, although typically a fee-earner taking on this additional responsibility will be given fee-credit for the time spent managing the pro bono practice, or will have their personal annual billable targets reduced by a percentage which reflects the expected time commitment required to develop the pro bono practice. For any firm with more than 100 fee earners, a full-time or part-time pro bono lawyer is advisable (see next section).	Source pro bono cases. Contact for pro bono referral agencies and identify potential matters for the firm. Contact point for pro bono enquiries internally and externally. Distribute pro bono cases to appropriate solicitors. Ensure the firm’s systems and processes create an enabling environment for pro bono to flourish. Communicate with key stakeholders.
Pro bono champion	This role may be taken by the senior partner to demonstrate leadership for pro bono.	Ensure the firm’s systems and processes create an enabling environment for pro bono to flourish. Communicate with key stakeholders. Be an internal and external advocate for pro bono. Conduct evaluations and support continuous improvement.

1.9.4.2 DEVELOPING PHASE OF PRO BONO

As pro bono grows within a firm, the need to manage increases. During this phase the firm/team will have established sources for pro bono matters. Solicitors’ knowledge of pro bono and how to become involved will be increasing across the firm/team, with resulting increased participation rates. It is at this stage that you might consider formalising the work of a pro bono organiser. At this stage, a firm will need to consider its own size and resources and whether they have the capacity to pay for a pro bono manager

Developing phase

Role	Core components	Responsibilities
Pro bono committee	In the developing phase, the role of the pro bono committee is diminished as the committee successfully transitions the firm to that with a dedicated, professional pro bono management structure.	If the committee continues to exist, it may wish to support the development of the pro bono strategy and set some strategic priorities and targets.
Pro bono manager/ coordinator/lawyer	Usually a lawyer with expertise in access to justice. This role will typically have emerged into a standalone role. In smaller firms (less than 100 lawyers) it may be a part-time role. Firms should commit to an open and transparent recruitment process, which considers diversity, social mobility, experience working in the advice sector, existing networks in the non-profit sector etc.	Generate a pipeline of pro bono matters for the firm. Contact point for pro bono enquiries internally and externally. Contact for pro bono referral agencies and identify potential matters for the firm. Distribute pro bono cases to appropriate lawyers. Report on pro bono activity. Ensure compliance with pro bono policy and protocols.
Pro bono champion	This role may be taken by the senior partner to demonstrate leadership for pro bono.	Ensure the firm’s systems and processes create an enabling environment for pro bono to flourish. Communicate with key stakeholders. Be an internal and external advocate for pro bono. Conduct evaluations and support continuous improvement.

1.9.4.3 ESTABLISHED PHASE OF PRO BONO

At this stage a firm will be becoming more nuanced in its offering and will be developing a reputation for pro bono. Typically, at this stage the firm will have a developed pro bono policy and have built a pro bono practice infrastructure, and might have invested in pro bono staffing, depending on its size and resources.

Established phase

Role	Core components	Responsibilities
Pro bono champions	These will typically work in tandem with, be part of, or have replaced the pro bono committee. There will be a pro bono champion established for each department of the firm. Pro bono champions can be respected partners, senior associates or business leaders who can influence the firm in a number of ways. Within an in-house context, in-house lawyers who are responsible for managing a pro bono partnership with a law firm will often be the pro bono champion in their team.	Promote, encourage and facilitate pro bono internally and externally. Assist in allocating pro bono matters or may delegate these matters to solicitors. Be recipients and contributors to pro bono reports and pro bono communications. Invest time in furthering the pro bono practice, for example by sitting on the pro bono committee; and Provide leadership with respect to the strategic direction of the firm’s pro bono practice.
Pro bono director/ pro bono partner	The pro bono lawyer role will have developed into a pro bono director or partner role. The director or partner will have experience of managing a pro bono practice. The director or partner may also have responsibility for other aspects of sustainability or responsible business. The director or partner will often have specialist expertise (e.g. human rights) and may supervise pro bono cases.	Sets the strategic direction of the pro bono practice. Represents the firm at external events and is a recognised expert in the field. Ensures the pro bono practice is having an impact in the community and creating lasting social change. Involves the firm’s clients in collaborative pro bono initiatives. Ensures the firm is recognised as a pro bono leader within the legal sector. Produces thought leadership pieces and engages with a range of stakeholders. Manages the pro bono team and budget. Typically becomes part of the firm’s leadership team or executive.
Pro bono administrator	The administrator will be a junior manager to the practice. A pro bono administrator can reduce the pro bono manager’s load by allowing them to focus on other tasks such as supervision, mentoring and casework. This role could be undertaken by a secretary or paralegal.	Administrative tasks of running the pro bono practice. This includes assisting with intake and assessment processes; opening, allocating and closing matters; and keeping documentation on matters. Collect pro bono data for monitoring and evaluation purposes. This includes assisting with the assessment of statistics from pro bono and commercial production reports, identifying how pro bono legal work is spread across the firm, comparing statistics against previous years, and monitoring progress in relation to pro bono targets. Ensure pro bono cases are compliant with pro bono protocols and procedures. Some administrators might be trained to carry out conflict of interest search requests for pro bono matters.
Pro bono lawyers	These lawyers will be dedicated to pro bono cases. The lawyers may work in the office, may be seconded to pro bono clients or other not-for-profit organisations. Some of these lawyers may be trainee lawyers undertaking a seat in the pro bono team.	Carry a pro bono caseload. Report on pro bono matters. Communicate about the pro bono practice.
Pro bono manager/ coordinator	Usually a lawyer with expertise in access to justice. Depending on the size of the firm, the pro bono partner may require one or more dedicated pro bono managers to continue managing the day-to-day pro bono management for the firm. For example the pro bono manager may manage a specific office or region, or area of legal work. Pro bono managers may in turn manage e.g. pro bono lawyers working on specific secondments or areas of law within their remit. Firms should commit to an open and transparent recruitment process, which considers diversity, social mobility, experience working in the advice sector, existing networks in the non-profit sector etc.	Generate a pipeline of pro bono matters for the firm. Contact point for pro bono enquiries internally and externally in relation to their region or area of focus. Contact for pro bono referral agencies and identify potential matters for the firm. Distribute pro bono cases to appropriate solicitors. Report on pro bono activity. Ensure compliance with pro bono policy and protocols.

1.9.5 OTHER CONSIDERATIONS REGARDING PRO BONO MANAGEMENT ROLES

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THE IMPORTANCE OF PRO BONO MANAGEMENT ROLES FOR DEVELOPING A FIRM-WIDE PRO BONO CULTURE

In the early stages of building a pro bono practice, a pro bono committee with a broad membership across practice groups can help to harness support for pro bono firm-wide and bolster the sustainability of the practice by spreading the responsibility for pro bono across the firm, so the practice is less at risk. At later, more established pro bono phases, the committee should ideally take an advisory role to support the larger-picture development of pro bono strategy, priorities and targets. Pro bono champions can also work in tandem with, or in replacement of the pro bono committee, in playing a similar role of promoting and encouraging pro bono work on a firm-wide basis.

It is helpful if a pro bono committee, or selected group of pro bono champions has a broad-based membership from different divisions and levels in the firm, from senior partners to junior lawyers, including influential and respected people who can actively encourage support for the practice. Some firms include practice group leaders representing commercial, property, and other non-litigation divisions. Diversity within a pro bono committee or pro bono champions allows the development and continuous growth of the pro bono practice as a firm-wide initiative. It is important that committee members have a keen interest in the firm’s pro bono practice. They must be prepared to justify their decisions, including approvals of new pro bono matters, to the firm.

Where possible, the committee should also be made out of lawyers from culturally, linguistically and socio-economically diverse backgrounds or experiences, such that different perspectives can be taken into consideration when driving forward pro bono initiatives.

The work of committee members should be recognised as a contribution to the firm. It is desirable that committee members’ time in managing, planning and related tasks is recorded, ideally through the use of a matter number, and distinguished from time spent on pro bono legal work. In addition, the work should be taken into account in performance appraisal, advancement and salary review.

THE PREVALENCE OF SPECIALIST PRO BONO ROLES AND PRO BONO PARTNER POSITIONS

The results of the Centre’s 2020 National Law Firm Pro Bono Survey showed that Australia had 48.7 dedicated full-time equivalent pro bono lawyers employed in 38 respondent firms. Of these 10.4 were partners, 3.6 were special counsel, 12.5 were senior associates, 17.2 were associates/lawyers and 5 were graduates.^[3]

Globally, the largest number of dedicated pro bono positions can be found in the United States, where professionally managed, institutional pro bono practices became ubiquitous within large law firms during the 1990s. Several hundred lawyers are employed in dedicated pro bono roles, mostly concentrated in the key financial centres, and running large scale pro bono practices on a national basis.

In the UK there is a large and expanding number of dedicated pro bono roles. As at 2022 there were around 70 dedicated positions within 45 of the top 100 law firms.

South Africa also has a significant population of pro bono lawyers and pro bono partners, who support compliance with mandatory pro bono requirements for lawyers admitted to the local bar.

A report published by the Centre in 2020 found 66 examples of dedicated pro bono partner positions globally. Pro bono partner roles exist in firms of all sizes and all structures, including all-equity partnership models.

DIVERSITY

The past decade has seen an increased focus on diversity, with the legal profession as a whole acknowledging the need to address the under-representation of minorities. Diversity and inclusion are increasingly seen not only as a practice that makes sound economic sense, but also an ethical practice to deliver culturally safe and just services. This includes diversity in a range of factors such as race, socio-economic background, age, gender, cultural and linguistic background, sexuality or disability Globally, the underrepresentation in large law firms of minority lawyers was brought into sharp focus during 2020 as a result of the global Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. In Australia, only 0.8% of all solicitors in a 2020 survey were identified as being Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander,^[4] even though 3.2% of the Australian population identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander according to the 2021 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander census.^[5] While 18.3% of the NSW population reported a disability in 2015, only 6% of the legal profession in NSW identified as having a disability or long-term illness.^[6]

The pro bono sector will face a crisis of credibility and legitimacy if it fails to demonstrate the capacity to employ more people from the communities it seeks to serve. In the wake of the global BLM movement there is growing pressure for law firms to do more to support anti-racism and anti-discrimination work.. While specific diversity surveys for the pro bono sector have yet to be conducted as at September 2022, it is also clear that the pro bono sector would benefit from improved diversity within its pro bono roles. Diversity should take a key consideration in the pro bono role recruitments, as it is surely antithetical to the notion of being actively anti-racist and anti-discrimination that firms do not provide opportunities for minority lawyers to be involved in the development and delivery of pro bono. Given pro bono clients who require assistance will come from a diversity of backgrounds, the pro bono sphere should also reflect a similar diversity in order to better able to truly address the needs of the vulnerable sectors within society.

PRO BONO MANAGERS WITH MULTIPLE RESPONSIBILITIES DUTIES AND ROLES

Firms should be aware that lawyers who perform pro bono management roles part-time  may experience tension between the demands of their pro bono work and their commercial practice. There might be occasions when the balance needs to be considered by the pro bono committee and possibly adjusted, particularly where the manager is a partner.

In some firms, pro bono managers are also responsible for the firm’s broader CSR program or a non-legal volunteering or charitable program. Other firms keep the administration of these programs separate.^[7]

Another consideration is of whether lawyers involved in pro bono management roles should remain involved in a significant amount of pro bono casework. Some managers may themselves have a significant pro bono casework practice while others, particularly part-time managers, may do little casework. Some managers have supervision and mentoring roles in their areas of expertise. Some managers have supervision and mentoring roles in their areas of expertise. In the Centre’s 2020 National Law Firm Pro Bono Survey, 29 out of 38 respondent firms (76.3%) reported that their firm had a pro bono manager or coordinator (defined as a person whose primary responsibility is to manage their firm’s pro bono legal work). ^[8] Of 28 firms with a pro bono manager or coordinator, 14 (50%) had their most senior manager or coordinator performing the role on a full-time basis. ^[9]

One method to ensure pro bono managers are able to balance multiple, sometimes-conflicting responsibilities is to ensure that their time is allocated and credited appropriately (see section below).

ALLOCATING AND CREDITING MANAGERS’ TIME

Although some pro bono managers engage in casework as well as managing the practice, they usually spend a significant proportion of their time on management tasks to ensure the pro bono practice runs efficiently and effectively. This time should be recorded and credited in the same way as for billable work, by assigning pro bono management work a matter number and entering time against it. Recording management time enables it to be monitored, evaluated and properly recognised by the firm. See Chapter 1.11 Crediting and recognising pro bono legal work and Chapter 1.13 Evaluation.

It is also important that commercial lawyers who are also performing the role of pro bono manager are given sufficient fee relief to permit their pro bono activities. These lawyers should:

• have their commercial budget decreased to make allowances for their pro bono management time; and
• ensure their pro bono time is recorded to a management matter number.

It is up to each firm to decide whether to include pro bono management time and pro bono committee work (or part of it) as contributing to the firm’s pro bono hours. However, the policy and administration work involved in pro bono management is not considered ‘pro bono legal work’ for the purposes of reporting on the National Pro Bono Target or in the National Law Firm Pro Bono Survey, unless it is akin to legal work within the definition. 

This chapter was reviewed in 2022 by the Australian Pro Bono Centre and the pro bono team at DLA Piper, headed by Nicolas Patrick. The Centre acknowledges and is grateful for the generous contributions of all those who assisted with the 2022 refresh of the Australian Pro Bono Manual.  

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[1] See further Appendix 2 — Australian Pro Bono Best Practice Guide.

[2] Australian Pro Bono Centre, Seventh National Law Firm Pro Bono Survey: Australian firms with fifty or more lawyers, (Report, February 2021) 67 <https://www.probonocentre.org.au/information-on-pro-bono/survey/>.

[3] Australian Pro Bono Centre, Seventh National Law Firm Pro Bono Survey: Australian firms with fifty or more lawyers, (Report, February 2021) 67 <https://www.probonocentre.org.au/information-on-pro-bono/survey/>.

[4] URBIS, 2020 National Profile of Solicitors (Report, Prepared for Law Society of NSW, 1 July 2021) 11 <https://www.lawsociety.com.au/sites/default/files/2021-07/2020%20National%20Profile%20of%20Solicitors%20-%20Final%20-%201%20July%202021.pdf>. As at the time of this manual update as at September 2022, no Australia-wide information regarding other diversity measures such as lawyers from culturally or linguistically diverse background, lawyers with disabilities or lawyers who identify as LGBTQIA+ could be located.

[5] Australian Bureau of Statistics, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people: Census (Report, 27 June 2022)

[6] Law Society of New South Wales, Diversity and Inclusion in the Legal Profession: The Business Case (Report, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, October 2021) <https://www.lawsociety.com.au/sites/default/files/2021-10/LS1856_PAP_DIV_CulturalDiversity_2021-10-14.pdf>.

[7] John Corker, ‘Pro Bono and Corporate Social Responsibility: Reputation building, recruitment, retention and client relationships’ (Law Society of New South Wales, September 2015) <https://www.probonocentre.org.au/apbn/sep-2015/pro-bono-corporate-social-responsibility/>.

[8] Australian Pro Bono Centre, Seventh National Law Firm Pro Bono Survey: Australian firms with fifty or more lawyers, (Report, February 2021) 61 <https://www.probonocentre.org.au/information-on-pro-bono/survey/>.

[9] Australian Pro Bono Centre, Seventh National Law Firm Pro Bono Survey: Australian firms with fifty or more lawyers, (Report, February 2021) 61 <https://www.probonocentre.org.au/information-on-pro-bono/survey/>.

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