By Neil Rose


Private practice solicitors provided £338 million worth of work on a pro bono basis over the past year - around 2% of the profession's gross fee income, research has estimated.



A survey of 1,001 solicitors by the Law Society, timed to coincide with the sixth National Pro Bono Week, found that 51% had conducted pro bono work in the previous 12 months, compared with 45% in a similar survey in 2002. Two-thirds had undertaken pro bono work at some point in the past.



Those undertaking pro bono last year spent an average of 43 hours on it (compared with 62 hours in 2002), which equated to around £8,200 each based on charge-out rates. Extrapolated across private practice, this meant solicitors provided £338 million worth of work, a figure that excludes the contributions of in-house solicitors, barristers, legal executives and others.



Some 40% of those who worked pro bono over the past year said the main reason they did so was to help people - 15% highlighted the 'feel good' factor.



Over half of solicitors said their firms leave the decision to do pro bono work to individual fee-earners - 26% said their firms actively encouraged it. Only 8% reported that their firms discouraged pro bono, while 2% said pro bono was prohibited.



Of the 35% of solicitors who had never worked pro bono, almost half said they simply did not want to do it, while a quarter were too busy.



Law Society President Andrew Holroyd said the rising number of solicitors doing pro bono work 'confirms our perception that more solicitors are becoming involved... This wider involvement also means that the pro bono workload, particularly at clinics and other regular pro bono projects, is being more evenly spread. This may well account for the fact that the number of pro bono hours per solicitor has declined'.



Robert Gill, chief executive of LawWorks, added: 'This survey is indicative of the increasing awareness and involvement in pro bono work by the Law Society, following on as it does from the appointment, for the first time ever, of a full-time Law Society pro bono coordinator and the funding of a full-time student pro bono manager at LawWorks.'



National Pro Bono Week begins on Monday and a record number of events are planned, culminating in the first National Pro Bono Conference on 17 November. The Prince of Wales has recorded a message of support for the week in his capacity as honorary member of the Law Society and president of Business in the Community, whose pro bono arm, ProHelp, is organising several events.



See also Editorial; Features: Positive Attitude; Features: Being Proactive