In-house lawyers are a significant part of the legal landscape. Our conversations with corporate counsel have revealed some common themes. When it comes to pro bono, in-house corporate lawyers and their employers can both meaningfully contribute to, and greatly benefit from, doing pro bono. Gabriela Christian-Hare, our Head of Strategy & Policy, shares some of these insights in this article.
One hundred and fifteen lawyers and fifteen paralegals insured under the National PI Insurance Scheme performed a staggering total of 2,244.7 pro bono hours between 1 January to 30 June 2017, more than double the hours reported in the previous 6-month period ending 31 December 2016.
The recent survey by the National Association of Community Legal Centres reveals that pro bono partnerships contributed 57,848 hours of assistance to Community Legal Centres in 2015/16, with volunteers supplying an additional 17,098 hours of work per week. Individual volunteers supplied an additional 17,098 hours of work per week or an estimated 889,096 hours to 112 CLCs in the year 2015/16.
Links to stories of interest to the pro bono legal community that you may have missed. You can also stay up to date on the latest pro bono news by following the Centre’s Twitter feed @AusPBC.
On 3 August 2017 the Centre launched Pro Bono Legal Work – A Guide for In-house Corporate Lawyers at an event at the Law Society of New South Wales. This resource is available free of charge on the Centre’s website. The Guide was launched by Brian Salter, Group General Counsel, AMP Limited, and Chairperson, ACC Australia GCC 100 who said: “the golden thread of modern contemporary legal practice is the opportunity to participate in pro-bono.”
Issue 121: September 2017
Welcome to the September 2017 issue of AUSTRALIAN PRO BONO NEWS, the Centre’s monthly newsletter providing stories and articles of interest to the Australian pro bono community.
We welcome your feedback, submissions and ideas for both Australian Pro Bono News and our website – please email [email protected] or refer to our Contact page.
For past issues, visit our newsletter Archive.
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5 September 2017
The recent remarks by Minister Peter Dutton on Radio 2GB that lawyers who act pro bono for asylum seekers and refugees are “playing a game with these people” caused considerable consternation across the legal profession. In response to the Minister’s remarks, the Centre issued a media release defending the commitment of lawyers who undertake pro bono legal work in Australia and strongly rejecting his suggestion.
The Minister’s comments are regrettable, but they have provided an opportunity to let others know about the remarkable work being done by pro bono lawyers across the country, particularly those in large law firms. Through traditional and social media coverage, the response has shone a light on how government supports and encourages this work. The response has also drawn attention to the broad range of work that lawyers do for those experiencing disadvantage and marginalisation in our community and the organisations that support them.
This month we have been busy meeting with in-house corporate legal and CSR teams following the launch of our new in-house corporate pro bono guide published in partnership with the Association of Corporate Counsel and the Law Society of NSW. We have had an excellent reception from the over 15 teams we have now met and will be formally following up in the new year with a forum for in-house counsel to discuss their progress, experiences and challenges.
The 2017 Target report will be released in the next few weeks together with a discussion paper to mark the 10th anniversary of the Target. The Centre would like to thank the law firms that attended a recent roundtable to identify the issues for discussion.
John Corker
Issue 121: September 2017
Welcome to the September 2017 issue of AUSTRALIAN PRO BONO NEWS, the Centre’s monthly newsletter providing stories and articles of interest to the Australian pro bono community.
We welcome your feedback, submissions and ideas for both Australian Pro Bono News and our website – please email [email protected] or refer to our Contact page.
For past issues, visit our Archives page.
*
5 September 2017
The recent remarks by Minister Peter Dutton on Radio 2GB that lawyers who act pro bono for asylum seekers and refugees are “playing a game with these people” caused considerable consternation across the legal profession. In response to the Minister’s remarks, the Centre issued a media release defending the commitment of lawyers who undertake pro bono legal work in Australia and strongly rejecting his suggestion.
The Minister’s comments are regrettable, but they have provided an opportunity to let others know about the remarkable work being done by pro bono lawyers across the country, particularly those in large law firms. Through traditional and social media coverage, the response has shone a light on how government supports and encourages this work. The response has also drawn attention to the broad range of work that lawyers do for those experiencing disadvantage and marginalisation in our community and the organisations that support them.
This month we have been busy meeting with in-house corporate legal and CSR teams following the launch of our new in-house corporate pro bono guide published in partnership with the Association of Corporate Counsel and the Law Society of NSW. We have had an excellent reception from the over 15 teams we have now met and will be formally following up in the new year with a forum for in-house counsel to discuss their progress, experiences and challenges.
The 2017 Target report will be released in the next few weeks together with a discussion paper to mark the 10th anniversary of the Target. The Centre would like to thank the law firms that attended a recent roundtable to identify the issues for discussion.
John Corker
