PILA hosted its first stakeholder meeting for the Pro Bono Pledge on 22 July 2021. They were joined by representatives from The Bar of Ireland, Matheson, A&L Goodbody, Arthur Cox, McCann Fitzgerald, Eugene F Collins, Leman Solicitors, Ronan Daly Jermyn, Philip Lee, Mason Hayes Curran, William Fry, Comyn Kelleher Tobin, OSK solicitors, Holohan Law Solicitors and Simmons LLP.
PILA has seen an increased demand in pro bono which has resulted in an increase in referrals. For the moment there are 50 law firms, 36 barristers, 2 in-house legal teams, and individual solicitors making the total number 2,500 legal practitioners.
The Pro Bono Pledge provides a common definition of pro bono, a commitment to a minimum aspirational target of 20 pro bono hours per lawyer per year, and a mechanism to benchmark progress. The Pledge has been received positively.
PILA actions for the next 12-24 months are:
to have all the top 20 law firms in Ireland become signatories to the pledge;
to find new international firms;
to increase the number of barristers; and
to increase the number of in-house teams.
For the rest of 2021, the work of PILA will be to establish a steering committee that reflects the diversity of all the legal professions across Ireland. PILA looks forward to continuing to support pro bono work in Ireland with the support of the Pledge Signatories.