QUICK LINKS
What is the Target?
The National Pro Bono Target is a voluntary and aspirational target of at least 35 hours of pro bono legal services per lawyer per year that can be signed up to by:
- law firms;
- incorporated legal practices;
- individual law firm solicitors;
- individual barristers; and
- barristers’ chambers.
The National Pro Bono Target for in-house corporate and government lawyers is a voluntary and aspirational target of at least 20 hours of pro bono legal services per lawyer per year that can be signed up to by:
- in-house legal teams; and
- individual in-house lawyers.
Signatories to the National Pro Bono Target endorse, as applicable, a Statement of Principles.
The Target amount of 35 hours for law firms, incorporated legal practices, individual solicitors, individual barristers and barristers’ chambers was chosen in consultation with the legal profession. It reflects what many lawyers in these practices are already doing and represents the minimum number of hours of pro bono legal services that all lawyers should aspire to undertake.
The Centre opened the Target on 1 July 2020 to in-house legal signatories who will be committing to using their best endeavours to achieve at least 20 hours of pro bono legal services per in-house lawyer per year. The Centre, in consultation with the In-house Pro Bono Steering Committee, has decided to take a staged approach and will review whether this hourly target should be raised to be aligned with other legal professionals in the future. The 20-hour benchmark reflects what many in-house lawyers are already doing and takes into consideration the unique context for in-house legal professionals.
Signatories to the Target have collectively reported over 5.5 million hours of pro bono legal work since the Target commenced in 2007.
How can I sign up?
You can sign up to the National Pro Bono Target as a law firm, incorporated legal practice, individual solicitor, individual barrister, barristers’ chambers, in-house legal team or individual in-house lawyer quickly and easily online. All you need to do is:
- Read the Statement of Principles that is relevant to you
- Click on “I agree”
- Provide a few simple contact details
You will then be added to the Register of Target Signatories and sent a welcome email and certificate.
If you have any further questions please contact the Centre or refer to the FAQs on the Target or the FAQs on the Target for in-house corporate and government legal teams and lawyers.
Further information for in-house legal teams and individual in-house lawyers, specifically, can be found here.
What’s new?
Why have a Target?
The Target was launched on 26 April 2007 with the aim of raising the profile of the professional responsibility of lawyers to:
- enhance access to justice for people who would not otherwise have access to legal assistance;
- to work for the public good; and
- to highlight the shared nature of that responsibility across the legal profession.
For further information on how the Target was developed, please refer to Development of the Target. A brief history of the first five years of the Target can also be found in the Fifth Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target from 2012.
What can be counted?
Only pro bono legal services can be counted for the purposes of the Target – please see our definition of pro bono for further information.
While other community service is important and applauded, the Target is focused on encouraging lawyers to undertake the legal work that only lawyers are qualified to do and which directly remove barriers to accessing justice.
You can also refer to the Guidance Notes for more detail on what can be counted.
Who has already signed up?
Many law firms, individual solicitors and barristers have already signed up and meet or achieve the Target each year. As at 30 June 2022, the Target covered over 17,400 lawyers.
Since 1 July 2020, the Centre has also welcomed in-house legal teams and individual in-house lawyers to sign up.
For a list of current signatories, please see the Register of Target Signatories.
For a list of Foundation signatories, see here.
Logos for Target Signatories
Target signatories also have the opportunity to display the Target logo in their email signatures, promotional material and on their websites, to identify that they are part of a growing community of 280 signatories, including the 25 largest law firms in Australia.
This makes them easily identifiable as Target signatories and highlights their commitment to access to justice for society’s most vulnerable.
Any enquiries from Target signatories regarding the logo should be directed to info@probonocentre.org.au.
All Target signatories are required to report on their performance against the Target each financial year, by completing a brief form provided by the Centre (online). All signatories’ responses are kept confidential.
Templates of the Target Reporting Form can be viewed here (please do not print and complete, these are templates only):
- Template Target Reporting Form for Firms and ILPs
- Template Target Reporting Form for Individuals (Solicitor or Barrister)
- Template Target Reporting Form for In-house Teams
- Template Target Reporting Form for In-house Individuals
The Centre then uses this data to produce an annual Performance Report on the Target. This report is de-identified and does not include information on the performance of individual signatories.
- 15th Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Target (2022)
- 14th Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Target (2021)
- 13th Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Target (2020)
- 12th Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Target (2019)
- 11th Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Target (2018)
- Tenth Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2017)
- Ninth Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2016)
- Eighth Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2015)
- Seventh Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2014)
- Sixth Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2013)
- Fifth Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2012)
- Fourth Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2011)
- Third Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2010)
- Second Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2009)
- First Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Aspirational Target (2008)
Page last updated October 2022.