National Pro Bono week: bid to explode myth that 'lawyers think only of their wallets'

National Pro Bono Week kicked off this week with 24 law firms and other organisations signing up to the best practice pro bono protocol.


The mass signing, held at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, included the likes of top-ten firms Allen & Overy, Eversheds, Lovells and Norton Rose, the Law Society, the Institute of Legal Executives, electronics giant Sony, regional practices - such as Mills & Reeve and Newcastle's Robert Muckle - and eight US law firms.


The signing was overseen by Lord Phillips of Sudbury, chairman of the Solicitors Pro Bono Group - which created the protocol - and the Attorney-General, Lord Goldsmith.


There are now 61 signatories to the protocol, with City firms Herbert Smith and Rooks Rider due to join them this week.


Former Law Society President Michael Napier, the Attorney-General's pro bono envoy, said the theme of this year's event was 'tune in', with 45 radio interviews organised around the country to spread the word. He explained: 'National Pro Bono Week helps to explode the myth that lawyers think only of their wallets, and it showcases the wide variety of ways that lawyers go out of their way to give free time to help meet unmet legal need.'


Meanwhile, Victoria Richter, an employment solicitor at Lovells, this week won a new judges' special award for pro bono innovation at the seventh Young Solicitors Group Pro Bono Awards.


Ms Richter has worked extensively with the homeless and the blind, providing employment law advice on audio tape and in Braille to people that are employed but have severe visual impairment.


There were five other winners at the ceremony in London. Lucy Wright, who works at Ford Simey in east Devon, won best young solicitor at a medium-sized firm. In 2003, she volunteered with a project called CLEAR (Christian Legal Education Aid and Research), a Kenyan-based organisation providing legal advice to poor communities with a particular focus on prison work.


She took unpaid leave, raised £5,000 and spent eight months in Nairobi, where she advised clients and developed the CLEAR office.


Lovells won a second award with best team of young solicitors, for attending Bow County Court nine afternoons a month to represent those without access to legal advice who are facing eviction. The judges found that the team progressed to assist clients beyond the legal work and addressed the causes of their financial problems and thereby make a significant difference to the lives of the people they advised.


Best young solicitor at a large firm was shared by Mills & Reeve assistant Lisa Bartlett - the driving force behind FLAG (Free Legal Advice Group) in Cambridge - and Simon Jones, a commercial litigator with magic circle firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, who impressed the judges with a consistent and dedicated approach to his pro bono work.


The final award went to Jason Hadden, a solicitor-advocate at BT, named best individual young solicitor working in-house. The judges were impressed with his grass roots-style advice - he provides hours of free advice every week to the substantial Italian community in Bromley on a range of matters.


The awards ceremony began with a short film called 'Make a Difference', commissioned by the group to highlight the work done by lawyers across the country and the effect it has. It was co-directed by last year's national winner in the large firm category, Clare Norriss of Beachcroft Wansbroughs.


In another innovative step, the YSG used several small businesses which themselves have received pro bono advice through the Prince's Trust in the organisation of the awards.