LawWorks - News roundup

Presenting the LawWorks Clinics Network Report

shivani.clancy@lawworks.org.uk — Wed, 09 Jul 2025 13:21:00 +0000

At our annual LawWorks Pro Bono Conference, Rebecca Howell, Head of Clinics Programme at LawWorks, took a moment to reflect on the impact of the work carried out by clinics on the network, presenting the figures that told the story...

The LawWorks Clinics Network Report uses data to illustrate the challenges facing the sector, while highlighting its unwavering commitment to access to justice.

As legal need continue to grow and resources remain stretched, clinics across the England & Wales are stepping up to meet demand, often with limited capacity and rising complexity in the cases they see. This year’s report reflects not only the scale of support provided, but the human effort behind it: the volunteers, staff, and communities working together to make pro bono advice possible.

At our annual LawWorks Pro Bono Conference, Rebecca Howell, Head of Clinics Programme at LawWorks, took a moment to reflect on the impact of the work carried out by clinics on the network, presenting the figures that told the story:

“I am delighted to be officially launching this year's LawWorks Clinics Network Report, which reflects the work, impact, and ongoing challenges faced by our clinics in 2024.

This year, 284 clinics submitted data, an incredible 91% of the network. That alone is a huge achievement, and I see it as a clear reflection of the commitment that clinics on our network show towards their vital work . Commitment not only to their clients, but to strengthening the wider pro bono community.

Collectively, clinics received over 90,000 enquiries, with more than 61,000 people receiving some form of support. At the heart of this, are over 13,000 volunteers, including students, trainees, solicitors, barristers and administrative staff, whose time and dedication to access to justice make this all possible.

Despite the figures mentioned painting a positive picture, they exist alongside increasingly urgent challenges faced by clinics. In 2024, nearly 24,000 people were unable to be helped; more than double the number from 2023. This reflects the current pressures: clinics are stretched by limited resources, fewer qualified volunteers, and a growing number of cases falling outside of their remit. As a result, many clients are caught in a cycle of signposting, ultimately left without access to the legal help they need.

Family and employment law remain the most common areas of law advised on by clinics, with family law enquiries especially seeing a significant rise. This highlights the continuing impact of the cost-of-living crisis and legal aid deserts, putting enormous pressures on families and individuals across the country.

The report also highlights the complexities many clinics are facing daily; clients arriving later in the legal process, their legal issues getting increasingly complex, often facing barriers such as digital exclusion or low literacy.

One thing is clear from all of this: whilst the incredible clinics on our network are working harder than ever, demand is outpacing capacity. This report is more than just a collection of data; it’s a story of a sector under immense pressure, but still fighting to meet the growing needs. The pro bono community is stepping up time and time again, but it cannot continue to do so indefinitely without the right support.

Thank you again to every clinic, volunteer, and partner who contributed to this year’s report.”

If you're inspired by the work of clinics on the LawWorks network, there are many ways to get involved. If you are a solicitor with a current practising certificate, consider volunteering with one of our 313 clinics or supporting us with a donation.

Every contribution is a step closer to achieving access to justice for all. With your help, we can reach more individuals, communities and support more volunteers.

Category

News roundup

News features

Blog

News Articles

Pro Bono Week is coming: 2nd - 6th November

peterjackson — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 12:26:37 +0000

Pro Bono Week will take place this year from 2nd to 6th November.

Now its 19th year, events and campaigns in Pro Bono Week offer an opportunity to celebrate and recognise the voluntary contributions made by lawyers across the four nations of the UK in giving free legal help to those in need.

In this year of unprecedented challenges, for both the voluntary and legal sectors, the role of pro bono legal assistance has never been more important. The overarching theme of Pro Bono Week 2020 is “Pro bono: Through the pandemic and beyond”.

With the potential that social distancing will still be in place, a mixture of online and in-person events are being planned. Law firms, chambers, legal societies, charities, in-house lawyers, universities and law schools are encouraged to start planning how to use Pro Bono Week 2020, whether through private or public events, or through internal or wider communications.

Event organisers are encouraged to highlight and explore the role of pro bono in light of the pandemic. We expect to see events focusing on three key areas:

Celebrating pro bono: events celebrating those who give back and recent successes in pro bono.
Pro bono pathways: events exploring different ways lawyers can volunteer and the different opportunities open to them at stages of their careers.
Effective pro bono: events sharing best practice and discussing what makes an effective pro bono service.

For resources and updates visit www.probonoweek.org.uk.

Plan your event now and have it added to the national calendar online by emailing mary@probonoweek.org.uk or for any tips on events to hold or campaigns you can join.

Category

News roundup

News features

News Articles

Policy updates: Legal support, courts reform, personal injury

peterjackson — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 12:24:00 +0000

James Sandbach, Director of Policy and External Affairs, summarises some recent developments for LawWorks policy work and emerging issues, including updates from the outcomes of the Government’s legal aid (LASPO) review, court modernisation and other relevant access to justice issues.

Legal support

Earlier this year, we reported on the outcomes from the LASPO review and the publication of the Government’s Legal Support Action Plan. Despite disappointment that the overall policy architecture of LASPO would remain unchanged, the plan contained some promising initiatives, including limited changes to legal aid scope and new pilot initiatives for early legal advice and support.

We continue to engage with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and a new Legal Support Advisory Group that is helping to steer the MoJ’s work. We also held a joint meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Pro Bono and Public Legal Education with the APPG on Legal Aid, with a specific focus on public perceptions and awareness of legal aid, and the MoJ’s public awareness work.

Since publication of the Action Plan legislation has been brought forward to bring all migrant children’s cases back into scope, and a further review of criminal legal aid has been announced. Other initiatives, such as exceptional case funding and telehone gateway reforms, are progressed through new guidance and tenders that can be found on the Ministry of Justice’s website. A key question remains - with the next spending review reportedly being fast-tracked - whether the legal support approach outlined in the Action Plan will get the needed funding.

Whilst not directly an outcome from the LASPO review, the MoJ has also worked with the President of the Family Division and an expert group to launch a review of childcare cases, following an unprecedented increase. One of the main aims of this review is to identify and divert cases away from court, making better use of ‘out of court services’ such as mediation and dispute resolution. The review includes a call for evidence on assessing risk of harm to children and parents in private law children cases, looking at relevant practice directives, and how the family courts respond to allegations of domestic abuse and other serious offences.

Courts reform

Alongside the Legal Support Action Plan, a key plank of the Government’s access to justice strategy is courts reform, including online dispute resolution. Earlier this year, LawWorks provided (with our partners in the Litigants in Person Support Strategy) an evidence submission to the Justice Select Committee for its inquiry into court and tribunal reforms, following critical reports by the National Audit Office and others. Legislation to facilitate the online court has been making its way through Parliament; the Courts and Tribunals (Online Procedure) Bill was amended to include a duty to ‘make support available for digitally excluded people.’ LawWorks have provided briefings to Parliamentarians on the Bill.

Personal Injury

Responding to important policy developments in personal injury (PI) claims, LawWorks contributed to a briefing with the PSU and others calling for a delay in the implementation of reforms under the Civil Liability Act. The briefing highlights how the combination of civil costs reforms (the Government review of part 2 of LASPO will retain current recoverability rules), the increase in the small claims threshold, and new the fixed tariff compensation system, may result in poorer outcomes for vulnerable injury victims. The new claims portal that the Government is planning to implement from November is intended for use by claimants, not lawyers. There are serious concerns, however, that the new system (currently untested) will be too complex to use without support. The MOJ estimates that the number of claimants who will be going through the process without legal representation could be around 150,000 per year.

There are concerns that that poor settlement offers from insurers will go unchallenged. The briefing highlights how expectations that the voluntary sector can step in to provide information and advice in this challenging area may be misplaced, and discusses how digital exclusion and legal information and capability issues need to be addressed in the portal design.

Download the briefing

Category

News roundup

News features

Blog

Co-production and pro bono

peterjackson — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 11:03:00 +0000

‘Co-production’ can sometimes sound like a challenging or dry piece of jargon, but it is making us sit up and think more about who it is we are here to help: the pro bono client or end user.

At the heart of co-production is the simple idea that clients are equal partners in the outcomes achieved and the service delivered. In 2017, LawWorks invited Edgar Cahn, both a legal clinician and innovator in co-production approaches, to the UK to share his ideas with the pro bono community. In this article we describe what LawWorks has subsequently been doing to bring the client experience into our learning and programme development.

Through our “Better Information project” LawWorks undertook in-depth sampling and feedback on client experiences in clinics, and the outcomes. A number of clients who were interviewed for the project expressed their willingness for follow-up interviews, and to engage in an ongoing basis in reviewing their outcomes. Key findings from the project include:

95% of clients felt the clinic listened to them very well or quite well, and 92% of clients felt they understood their legal problem very well, or quite well;
Most people received what they hoped for, and 88% would recommend the clinic to someone else;
21% of clients said that their legal problem was settled or partially settled, while for 50% it was too early to say, and for 17% further action to tackle their legal problem was possible
78% of clients said they had a better understanding of their next steps. Nearly half of the clients interviewed (47%) said they were thinking of going to court or tribunal, but a quarter changed their plans following advice;
For 68% of clients, the help or support received had reduced their stress level; 65% of clients felt more in control of their situation and 75% said they felt more confident to deal with their problem, or a similar one, in the future

The project has been a catalyst for looking more critically, and in a client-centric way, at the effectiveness of pro bono clinics. In collecting data and planning new clinic initiatives, we need to think not just about outputs (e.g. the number of clients seen relative to clinic capacity), but also about outcomes. What interventions have the biggest impact for clients? Soft outcomes, such as improvements in clients understanding, capability, and reduced stress can be as important as the immediate resolution of a legal issue. Often visiting the clinic is the start of journey to resolution rather than the end. The project has also given us much richer data for our clinics report.

Exploring co-production in Wales

Exploring the co-production approach, LawWorks held a workshop in July involving pro-bono clinic co-ordinators in Wales, followed up with a report. The workshop, run by an external facilitator, used a mix of discussion and participatory techniques that allowed an in-depth exploration of the type of current client engagement activities, the reasons for engaging with clients and potential approaches to extending user engagement.

The report, also reflecting findings of a questionnaire sent to pro-bono clinic providers in Wales prior to the workshop, found that most clinics do currently gather feedback from service users, and use both positive and negative feedback to improve their services. The added value that client engagement and follow up can demonstrate - to stakeholders, policy makers, funders and service design and delivery managers - was well understood by clinics. However, there was mixed feedback about whether user engagement is something that clinics might want, or have the capacity, to do more of, and few clinics currently involved clients in service design.

Client Engagement in Pro Bono Clinics

LawWorks will be running a learning session event for pro bono advice providers with the Co-production Network for Wales in October. The Network's remit is to grow good practice, support policy and decision makers to shape a positive context for co-production, aiming to transform public services. The session will be open for anyone in the pro bono sector with an interest in co-production and service user involvement; it will cover both the theory and practical elements of how to start building a toolbox of methods and techniques.

Whilst our initial focus has been in Wales, where there is a favourable policy environment for co-production, we aim to explore the approach more widely, and produce some useful bespoke resources. Resources on co-production can be found from the following organisations:

Category

News roundup

News features

Blog

LASPO Review: New approach from Government on Legal Support

peterjackson — Mon, 25 Feb 2019 12:00:00 +0000

The long awaited Government report on the review of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO) has been published alongside a Legal Support Action Plan, outlining a package of policies on access to legal support services.

LawWorks have been engaged at all stages of the review and pre-review process, including

Joint APPG meetings with Ministers;
Co-ordinating, drafting and submitting a joint memo from stakeholders to the Justice Select Committee;
Submitting evidence to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) Review Team, and participating in the MoJ’s key consultative groups;
Organising meetings at the main party conferences in 2017 and 2018 on access to justice topics and the work of the Bach Commission on Access to Justice;
Supporting a conference with the Legal Aid Practitioners Group (LAPG), and also engaging wider stakeholders (for example the Equality and Diversity Forum).

The outcome of this review does not propose to change the fundamental structure of LASPO as the basis for providing legal aid, however some significant developments and initiatives are proposed. Government proposals include:

On legal aid reform

The legal aid eligibility (means testing) regime to be reviewed, extending eligibility for non‑means tested legal aid for parents opposing applications for placement or adoption orders.
A campaign to improve awareness of how people can access legal support, including legal aid.
Expanding the scope of legal aid to include separated migrant children in immigration cases, and to cover special guardianship orders in private family law.
Working with the Law Society to explore an alternative model for family legal aid.
Working with legal practitioners on simplifying the exceptional case funding process, including a possible new emergency procedure.
To remove the mandatory telephone gateway requirements for discrimination, special educational needs and debt cases.
A consultation on proposals to provide guidance for families setting out the inquest process and legal aid system in lay terms.
A comprehensive review of the criminal legal aid fee schemes and structures.

Early advice and support for Litigants in Person

Undertake a pilot to explore how Government can better co-ordinate and signpost legal support.
Pilot and evaluate the expansion of legal aid to cover early advice in a specific area of social welfare law by autumn 2019.
Work collaboratively with the sector to pilot, test and evaluate the provision of holistic legal support hubs with up to £5m of funding to support new initiatives.
Increased funding for the Litigants in Person Support Strategy to £3m for the next two years.

Wider engagement on research, processes and innovation

Work more across departments to focus on ways to reduce preventable demand.
Work across the justice system to explore how it can use data more effectively.
Establish a Legal Support Advisory Network to make use of external expertise, shape research and evaluation proposals, and potentially explore new research opportunities and collaborations.

On pro bono the review also says that:

“We are also keen to work closely with the legal professions, and specialist not-for-profit organisations about the role Government can play to support the delivery of important pro bono services across the country. In particular the ways in which new technologies can empower legal practitioners to deliver more effective pro bono support, and other forms of support legal professions and firms can provide to individuals and other providers in the not-for-profit sector.”

The emphasis in the Action Plan on early advice and co-location of advice with other services (eg healthcare settings) is especially welcome, and the Plan draws on key recommendations of the Low Commission. Notwithstanding disappointment that restrictions on legal aid scope for social welfare law have only been marginally addressed, we will continue to constructively engage with these new initiatives.

Category

News roundup

News features

Blog

Regulatory reform and the rapidity of change

peterjackson — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 18:30:00 +0000

2019 will see significant changes to the regulatory regime for solicitors as the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) prepare to introduce their Handbook reforms, which were approved by the Legal Services Board in December.

Originally due in April, implementation has been pushed back a few months. The handbook changes, which cover the full range of professional codes, principles, practice and accounting rules, are accompanied by new policies on transparency, waivers and enforcement. You can see LawWorks responses to consultations, including to the SRA’s Strategy:

The consultation process opened up a useful dialogue with the SRA on regulatory issues impacting pro bono, focusing on areas of uncertainty under existing practice rules:

Last year we helped secure a pro bono position statement from the SRA to clarify and provide assurance on the permissibility of employed private practice solicitors volunteering in clinics outside their employment.
In respect of insurance, the SRA consulted us on changing the insurance requirements for solicitors providing reserved legal services on behalf of special bodies to having ‘adequate and appropriate’ rather than ‘reasonably equivalent’ insurance.
We have commented on new draft guidance for charities and not-for-profit bodies the SRA have commissioned to accompany the Handbook.
We held a clinics roundtable last November with the SRA which facilitated useful feedback and dialogue.
The SRA have confirmed renewal of our clinics waiver which can enable solicitors volunteering through affiliated pro bono clinics to come under LawWorks insurance in certain circumstances.

In its position statement on pro bono the SRA states that it wants “to encourage those willing and able to carry out pro bono work to do so.” We have also published guidance for in-house solicitors clarifying the scope of pro bono that can be undertaken despite some regulatory issues, and general practice guidance for clinics.

The regulatory landscape may continue to evolve, to implement changes associated with the new Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE), and to address innovation delivery through LawTech. Over the past year we have held joint one day workshop events with CLEO on both of these issues.

In light of the changing legal services market, Professor Stephen Mayson is undertaking an ‘independent review’ of legal services regulation, in part to explore the longer-term issues raised by the 2016 Competition and Markets Authority's 'Legal services market study' and its recommendations. The Legal Services Board are also consulting on their objectives, proposing a greater emphasis on consumer awareness and public legal education. We have responded to their outline Business Plan.

Our next member Forums will focus on the issues of regulation and pro bono, including the challenges and opportunities for in house teams, discussion with Stephen Mayson on his review, and with the SRA about the new handbook.

Category

News roundup

News features

Blog

Press Release: LawWorks welcomes new Director of Policy and External Affairs

Elizabeth_Kolawole_1 — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 15:57:00 +0000

LawWorks (the Solicitors Pro Bono Group) is pleased to announce that James Sandbach has been appointed to the new role of Director of Policy and External Affairs at the charity.

Martin Barnes, Chief Executive of LawWorks said:

“We are delighted that James will be joining the LawWorks team as Director of Policy and External Affairs. James brings considerable skills, experience and achievements to the role, with a strong track record of policy influence and a demonstrable commitment to enabling access to justice. His significant experience of the legal and advice sectors as a Policy Manager includes recent work with the Legal Action Group, the Low Commission and providing the secretariat for the All Party Parliamentary Groups on Pro Bono, Public Legal Education and Legal Aid. James previously spent 10 years as Legal Affairs Policy Officer at Citizens Advice, and is highly respected for his knowledge of the legal and advice sectors.”

Commenting on his appointment, James Sandbach said:

“I am very pleased to be joining LawWorks and look forward to working with the charity’s staff, trustees, members and its many stakeholders. I have a longstanding passion for access to justice and a strong commitment to the values of pro bono and the contribution of volunteer lawyers, law students and law schools.’

James will be starting in his role at LawWorks on 6th February.

Ends

LawWorks is a charity working in England and Wales to connect volunteer lawyers both with people in need of legal advice, who are not eligible for legal aid and cannot afford to pay, and with the not for profit organisations that support them and their communities. LawWorks believes in the power of pro bono legal advice to improve the lives of people in need.

For additional information about LawWorks, please visit: www.lawworks.org.uk

LawWorks is supported by the Law Society of England and Wales, the independent professional body for solicitors.

Press contact:

Valerie Hudson t: 020 7 092 3952 or 07960 575 679 e: valerie.hudson@lawworks.org.uk

Category

News roundup

News features

News Articles

Press Release

Press Release: LawWorks welcomes new Chief Executive

admin — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 23:00:00 +0000

LawWorks welcomes new Chief Executive

LawWorks is delighted to announce the appointment of Martin Barnes as its new Chief Executive. Martin takes up the post after Easter and will replace Nick Gallagher who completes his six-month tenure as interim CEO.

Martin comes to LawWorks with extensive and varied experience in the charitable sector and has considerable experience of leading charities. After passing the Bar Exam and following experience in the advice sector (including at a Citizens Advice Bureau), he subsequently spent over 5 years as CEO of the Child Poverty Action Group and a further 10 years as CEO of Drugscope until December 2013.

Martin said, ‘I am passionate about access to justice for all and excited to have the opportunity to lead LawWorks. LawWorks has a pivotal role in connecting pro bono lawyers with people in need of legal advice who cannot afford a lawyer, and the not-for-profit organisations and groups which support them. I am excited about the development of innovative programmes such as Secondary Specialisation and the Litigants in Person Strategy, which aim to provide more in-depth support to those in need. I am looking forward to working with LawWorks members, and am keen to increase our reach and support through further regional development.’

Paul Newdick, Chair of LawWorks, welcomed Martin’s appointment, ‘This is a vital time for LawWorks as we put into operation our new three year strategic plan to increase the reach, impact and efficiency of pro bono legal delivery to people and community groups in need in England & Wales. We are thrilled to have secured the depth of experience and background, both in the advice sector and in charity management, that Martin brings. The Board and staff of LawWorks are really looking forward to working with him to achieve our goals in this changing legal landscape.’

Ends

Notes to editors

LawWorks is a National Charity working in England and Wales to connect volunteer lawyers both with people in need of legal advice, who are not eligible for legal aid and cannot afford to pay, and with the not for profit organisations that support them.
LawWorks believes in the power of pro bono legal advice to improve the lives of people in need.
For additional information about LawWorks visit www.lawworks.org.uk.

Contact:
Valerie Hudson t: 020 7092 3952 e: valerie.hudson@lawworks.org.uk

Category

News roundup

News features

Press Release

Press Release: LawWorks launches 200th Pro Bono Legal Advice Clinic

admin — Fri, 27 Feb 2015 11:24:00 +0000

LawWorks launches 200^th Pro Bono Legal Advice Clinic

LawWorks is pleased to announce the launch of the Cardiff Employment Law Pro Bono Advice Clinic which becomes the 200^th free legal advice clinic to join the LawWorks Clinics Network. This significant milestone for the charity demonstrates the valuable contribution solicitors across the country are making to some of the most vulnerable in our society.

Following a short pilot, the Cardiff Employment Law Pro Bono Advice Clinic will officially launch on May 20^th 2015 at the Speakeasy Advice Centre, Roath, Cardiff. The launch event is an opportunity to highlight the service to the local community and encourage more lawyers in the city to get involved.

LawWorks Cymru has been supporting local volunteers to re-establish an employment law clinic following the closure of the Cardiff Law Centre in October 2014. Andrew Cross, Chair of the Management Committee, Cardiff Law Centre said ‘For nearly 10 years, the Cardiff LawWorks Pro Bono Employment Clinic was hosted at Cardiff Law Centre and a dedicated team of volunteer pro bono solicitors delivered specialist employment law advice to those undergoing a particularly difficult time in their workplace – typically those undergoing redundancy, disciplinary investigation, race/sex discrimination, non-payment of their wages would all find their way to the pro bono clinic. The launch of the new pro bono employment clinic at Speakeasy Advice Centre therefore represents a continuation of this vital clinic established 10 years ago next month’.

Martin Barnes, Chief Executive of LawWorks said ‘Our experience has shown legal advice clinics are an effective way to extend access to justice to a significant number of people. Last year, the LawWorks Clinics Network dealt with over 29,000 enquiries. While it is clear that pro bono cannot be seen as a replacement for legal aid it does provide an important lifeline to many with nowhere else to turn.’

Evaluation of the experiences of clients accessing pro bono clinics in Wales in the last year shows that clients gained not only a better understanding of their legal matter, but also saw reductions in stress levels and improvements in their wellbeing, mental and physical health, and family and social relationships.

Law Society president Andrew Caplen said: ‘I am pleased to see so many solicitors in Cardiff are getting involved in this important cause. As the LawWorks network grows to 200 clinics it is clear that solicitors around the country are coming together to support access to justice for those in need. The scale and scope of their work is humbling. From young families frightened of facing eviction to those seeking asylum from persecution, law clinics help so many people.’

The clinic offers advice to those that live, work or study in Cardiff and the surrounding areas and operates fortnightly, supported by around 35 solicitors from a wide range of firms, students from Cardiff University Law School and a volunteer clinic co-ordination team.

Ends

Notes to editors:

1. LawWorks is a Charity working in England and Wales to connect volunteer lawyers both with people in need of legal advice, who are not eligible for legal aid and cannot afford to pay, and with the not for profit organisations that support them and their communities.

2. LawWorks believes in the power of pro bono legal advice to improve the lives of people in need.

3. For additional information about LawWorks visit www.lawworks.org.uk.

4. For more information from the LawWorks Cymru team click here.

Contact:
Valerie Hudson t: 020 7092 3952 e: valerie.hudson@lawworks.org.uk

Category

News roundup

News features

Press Release

Press Release: LawWorks & Attorney General Student Pro Bono Award Winners Announced

admin — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 15:13:00 +0000

Students and law schools from across the UK gathered in the House of Commons on 25^th March for the annual LawWorks & Attorney General Student Pro Bono Awards 2015, which were endorsed and presented by Rt Hon Attorney General, Jeremy Wright QC MP.

The recent LawWorks Law School Pro Bono and Clinic Report demonstrates that at least 70% of all law schools in the UK are involved in pro bono projects and 45% of clinics in the LawWorks clinics network involve a law school. The awards recognise this hard work and celebrate the innovation, commitment and dedication of law students across the country.

The winners were as follows:

Best Contribution by a Law School – University of Strathclyde
Best Contribution by a Team of Students – University of Huddersfield’s Legal Advice Clinic
Best New Student Pro Bono Activity – University of Greenwich
Best Contribution by an Individual Student – Helen Ingram, BPP University (London)

The Attorney General presented the annual Access to Justice Foundation Student Essay Competition Prize to Dale Timson for his article “Does the legal profession prioritise access to justice for all?” which will feature in the New Legal Journal.

Kings College London was announced winner of the Law School Challenge 2015, after their success in raising funds for pro bono charities LawWorks and the Bar Pro Bono Unit.

The Attorney General presented the awards alongside LawWorks’ Chief Executive, Nick Gallagher, LawWorks Trustee Lord Willy Bach, and Head of Legal at LexisNexis, James Harper.

The RT Hon Attorney General, Jeremy Wright QC MP, said: ‘All students nominated across the four categories have demonstrated a tremendous amount of skill, initiative and selflessness of spirit which I hope will help keep pro bono a force for good in the future of the legal profession in the U.K. “

For the seventh year running LexisNexis generously sponsored the Awards in its entirety, demonstrating a continued commitment to student pro bono. James Harper, Head of Legal for LexisNexis UK & Ireland attended the event and said: “LexisNexis is incredibly proud to continue our long running association with LawWorks and the Attorney General Student Pro Bono Awards. Access to justice for all is a fundamental part of upholding the rule of law in society, a cause which is a central part of LexisNexis’s global corporate objectives. The role that pro-bono plays in this cannot be underestimated; and those that give their time to undertake this work should be praised. It is only fitting that we bring some well-deserved attention to the pro-bono projects nominated and celebrate their fantastic efforts. LexisNexis congratulates all those nominated and shortlisted, as well as the many that have not been mentioned, and we are honoured to be able to support their tireless and vital work.”

Jonathan Smithers, Vice President of the Law Society said: ‘’It was an honour to sit on the Judging panel for this year’s Student Pro Bono Awards. I was extremely impressed by the innovation displayed by students and universities in the development of pro bono projects, in order to reach those communities who otherwise have no access to legal help.”

Ends

Notes to editors:

You can see details of all the shortlisted nominees here:

RT Hon Attorney General, Jeremy Wright QC MP, endorses these awards, which are organised by LawWorks (the operating name for the Solicitors Pro Bono Group) www.lawworks.org.uk.

This year’s panel of judges comprised:

Isla Grant - Editor of lawcareers.net
Jonathan Smithers – Vice President of the Law Society of England & Wales

Tom Laidlaw - Head of Academic and Public Sector Marketing at LexisNexis UK and Ireland.
Richard De Friend – Ex-Director of Pro Bono at College of Law and PBUK

LawWorks believes in the power of pro bono legal advice to help improve the lives of people in need.

We do this in two ways:

by enabling access to justice to individuals in need of advice, who are not eligible for legal aid and are without the means to pay for a lawyer; and
by brokering legal advice to small not-for-profit organisations, to support the continuation and expansion of their services to people in need.

LawWorks’ role is to work within England and Wales to connect people in need of legal advice and assistance, and not-for-profit organisations that support them, with the skills and expertise of lawyers willing to meet those needs for free.

LexisNexis^® (www.lexisnexis.com) is a leading global provider of content-enabled workflow solutions designed specifically for professionals in the legal, risk management, corporate, government, law enforcement, accounting and academic markets. LexisNexis originally pioneered online information with its Lexis^® and Nexis^® services. A member of Reed Elsevier [NYSE: ENL; NYSE: RUK] (www.reedelsevier.com), LexisNexis serves customers in more than 100 countries with 15,000 employees worldwide.

In the UK, LexisNexis (www.lexisnexis.co.uk) online services include LexisLibrary - named Online Product of the Year at the Legal Technology Awards - and Nexis^® the single most powerful global news & business information service. The company has over 1,000 employees in the UK.

LexisNexis has kindly made its LexisPSL resource available free of charge to all LawWorks Student Member Clinics. Student and law school representatives involved in a law school legal advice clinic who would like access to this resource may contact Thomas Laidlaw at LexisNexis (thomas.laidlaw@lexisnexis.co.uk) or Grace Kelly at LawWorks (grace.kelly@lawworks.org.uk).

The Access to Justice Foundation was formed as a result of the Legal Services Act 2007 and is the recipient of any funds awarded by the courts in the form of so called ‘pro bono costs orders’. The foundation is chaired by the former Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith. You can find out more information about the Foundation on their website www.accesstojusticefoundation.org.uk.

Contact:

Valerie Hudson LawWorks t: 020 7092 3952 e: valerie.hudson@lawworks.org.uk

Grace Kelly LawWorks t: 020 7092 3954 e:grace.kelly@lawworks.org.uk

Melissa Higgsmith LexisNexi t: 020 7400 2977 e:melissa.higsmith@lexisnexis.co.uk

Ruth Daniel Access to Justice Foundation t: 020 7092 3973 e:ruthdaniel@atjf.org.uk

Category

News roundup

News features

Press Release