Pro Bono Week Ireland is a part of a wider project, i.e. European Pro Bono Week, a multi-city week-long event to celebrate and highlight the role played by the European lawyers in supporting civil society and human rights organisations and promoting access to justice for those in need. It is organised by the European Pro Bono Initiative, PILnet, Trustlaw, law firms and European pro bono clearinghouses and organisations.
A central objective of Pro Bono Week is to bring together various stakeholders in the pro bono ecosystem – lawyers, law students, non-profits, human rights activists, academics and business – for an engaging conversation about important issues relating to legal needs within Europe and the role for pro bono in tackling these issues.
The Pro Bono Week Committee, consisting of PILA (The Public Interest Law Alliance), a project of FLAC, A&L Goodbody, Arthur Cox, DLA Piper Ireland, Matheson, McCann FitzGerald and members of the Law Library, are pleased to invite you to participate in Pro Bono Week Ireland which celebrates the role played by volunteer lawyers supporting civil society and those in need. Events will take place, throughout the week, to highlight and promote pro bono culture as follows:
We are delighted to invite NGOs to attend What Can Pro Bono Do for Your NGO?
At this free in-person event on Monday, 9 June, leading pro bono lawyers will explain how your organisation can benefit from free legal assistance!
This event is open to NGOs regardless of whether they have engaged with PILA or accessed pro bono support before.
We encourage NGOs who would like an introduction to PILA and pro bono to attend. This includes NGOs who are unsure of what their legal needs are or what type of legal support they may need.
We also encourage you to share the details of this event with your networks and other NGOs who may benefit from it.
Our speakers will be able to answer your questions on the day.
When? Monday 9 June 2025, 10 am – 11 am
Where? 85/86 Dorset Street Upper, Dublin 1
Any Questions? Email pila@flac.ie
Meet the Pro Bono professionals who will be speaking on the day…
Assumpta O’Connell is a Senior Associate, having worked in McCann FitzGerald for almost 20 years. She currently manages McCann FitzGerald’s pro bono practice, which provides access to free legal advice for vulnerable individuals and free legal support to help strengthen small charities, nonprofits, and social enterprises. Assumpta is committed to building McCann FitzGerald’s pro bono practice and scaling its impact.
Carolann leads the pro bono practice at Arthur Cox and is responsible for the strategic development and oversight of pro bono. As a practising solicitor, Carolann advises on immigration law matters. She has extensive experience developing and managing pro bono initiatives, bringing over 10 years of international rule of law experience to the role. The Arthur Cox pro bono practice provides legal advice and representation to individuals, not-for-profit organisations and social enterprises that could not otherwise afford it. Carolann develops impactful pro bono projects bringing together lawyers from across the firm to represent pro bono clients in areas such as access to justice, employment and immigration law. She contributes to the continued development of the pro bono sector in Ireland and is a steering committee member of Pro Bono Pledge Ireland, European Pro Bono Initiative and Dublin Solicitors Bar Association Human Rights Committee.
David has practised at the Irish Bar since 2005, specialising in public, administrative, regulatory and constitutional law, judicial review, and EU matters. He is an elected member of the Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for Ireland and its Editorial Committee, and was nominated by the Bar Council to the Legal Services Regulatory Authority review committee. David’s commitment to access to justice is reflected in extensive pro bono work, including through PILA. With Community Law & Mediation, he co‑drafted proposed amendments to the Nursing Homes Support Scheme Act 2009 so that vacant “Fair Deal” houses could be used by Approved Housing Bodies as transitional accommodation for people facing homelessness. Through the Bar Council’s Voluntary Assistance Scheme he has delivered pro bono opinions to charities, including an alternative‑education centre for teenagers. He has advised the Irish Refugee Council pro bono on asylum matters, and assisted Mercy Law Resource Centre on housing and welfare issues. For SPIRASI, the national centre for survivors of torture, he delivered medico‑legal training and has advised on novel legal questions. David is a founding signatory of Pro Bono Pledge Ireland
Jack Gibson is A&L Goodbody's Pro Bono Lawyer, practicing full-time in the firm's Pro Bono Department. Jack represents clients before the International Protection Office and maintains an administrative law practice in the area of housing rights. Jack also develops and delivers legal education programmes to empower individuals and families, and the organisations that support them, to better understand the law and legal system, and realise their rights. Jack also works with civil society organisations and social enterprises assisting them in identifying their legal needs and accessing pro bono advice to further their aims.
This year, the overarching theme for the European Pro Bono Week is ‘Strengthening Civic Participation in Europe’.
Tune in to hear from:
Atanas Politov is Dentons’ Europe Director of Positive Impact and Pro Bono, based in the firm’s Budapest office. He joined the firm in September 2016 to coordinate Dentons’ pro bono work across continental Europe. Atanas was also heading the Dentons Europe Diversity & Inclusion Committee and the law firm’s ESG program. Before joining Dentons, Atanas was PILnet’s Director for Programs and was responsible for managing PILnet’s pro bono and access to justice efforts globally. Previously, he developed large-scale anti-discrimination and legal aid reform projects in Eastern Europe and the Western Balkans and oversaw the development of PILnet’s pro bono efforts in China, Hungary, Russia, Italy, Germany, Spain, France, and Poland. Atanas has a Law degree from Sofia University, Bulgaria, and an LLM’02 from Columbia Law School, NYC.
Gina Romero, a national of Colombia, was appointed as United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association and took up her functions in April 2024.
Prior to her appointment, Ms. Romero led several initiatives for the promotion and defense of democracy and the rule of law. She is one of the founders and served for nearly 10 years as Executive Director of the Latin American and Caribbean Network for Democracy(Redlad). In this position, she also served as Secretariat of the Civil Society Pillar of the Community of Democracies. In these capacities, she has had direct relations with multiple stakeholders (including governments, civil society, academic, and private sector representatives) in 19 countries in the American Continent, and at least 35 in Europe, Africa, and Asia.
Kerttu Willamo works as a Civic Space Project Officer at the European Civic Forum (ECF), a pan-European network of nearly 100 civil society organisations across Europe working to protect civic space, enable civic participation and build civil dialogue for more equality, solidarity and democracy. Kerttu’s background is in human rights advocacy and activist movements. She is coordinating ECF’s work on civic space monitoring and the protection of civic actors and human rights defenders.
Date: Tuesday, 10 June 2024, 2pm - 3pm
Location: Online
Join Us: Amplifying Impact and Access to Justice Event
As part of Pro Bono Week Ireland 2025, we are pleased to invite you to an inspiring event focused on amplifying impact and access to justice through pro bono work. This event is for Pro Bono Pledge Ireland members, as well as NGOs, firms, and practitioners who are interested in learning more about the value of pro bono in amplifying the impact of organisations working to advance social justice.
About the Event
The event will take place on Wednesday 11 June from 10am to 12pm at McCann FitzGerald LLP, Riverside One, Grand Canal Dock, Dublin 2. The event will begin with a welcome by Stephen Holst, Managing Partner, McCann FitzGerald LLP followed by the launch of the Pro Bono Pledge Ireland Impact Report 2024 by Eilis Barry, CEO of FLAC. There will then be a series of lively discussions moderated by Sharon Dillon Lyons BL:
Panel 1: "What One Person Can Do" This discussion will feature Michael Kinsey BL and Rachel Nolan of Nolan Solicitors, who have made significant pro bono contributions throughout their careers.
Panel 2: "Shoulder to Shoulder" This panel will include Jane O’Sullivan, Managing Solicitor, Community Law & Mediation and Assumpta O’Connell, Head of Pro Bono at McCann FitzGerald discussing how independent law centres and law firms can work together to advance social justice.
Panel 3: "Sharing the Load" This discussion will feature Oisín O'Reilly, CEO of Outhouse LGBT+ Centre andMartina Genockey (Strategic Communications Officer Women’s Aid) discussing how they utilise pro bono, recognise its value, and all the forms in which legal work can contribute to the NGO’s goals.
Why Attend?
This event offers an opportunity to:
Learn about the Pro Bono Pledge Ireland Impact Report 2024.
Hear from experienced practitioners and organisations in moderated discussions about how pro bono can work for you.
Connect with others interested in pro bono work.
Date: Wednesday 11 June 2025, 10am - 12pm
Location: McCann FitzGerald, 2 Sir Joh Rogerson's Quay, Dublin 2, D02 A021
This exceptional event includes an introduction to Amicus, a UK based nonprofit working for those facing a death sentence in the US by Amicus Director, Margot Ravenscroft. Samantha Knights KC (Matrix) presents ‘Increasing access to justice – right to a fair trial and fair procedure’ and Nina Jayne Carroll (Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton) introduces Sunny Jacobs (Death row exoneree & Founder and President of the Sunny Center Foundation USA) who shares her story of being an innocent on death row, and the impact of pro bono support in her life.
Closing Q & A will be hosted by Carolann Minnock (Arthur Cox). A reception will follow, ensuring time to meet the panel and connect with colleagues.
Samantha Knights KC is a barrister at Matrix specialising in public law including refugee and trafficking, prison, and immigration law. Samantha teaches widely and was formerly Adjunct Professor at the University of Miami School of Law. She has contributed to pro bono work throughout her career in the UK and abroad including at the Islington Law Centre, European Human Rights Advocacy Centre, the Bar Human Rights Committee, and as a reviewer of Bar Pro Bono/Advocate. She led a rule of law FCDO funded project in Afghanistan 2006-8 which won the Bar Pro Bono Award. She was an Amicus intern at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund in New York in 2000 working with George Kendall and worked in particular on the cases of Wilbert Rideau and Kenneth ‘Kenny’ Reams. She subsequently helped Kenny organise an art exhibition in London, has spoken with him at festivals and universities about the film Free Men which tells his story.
Sunny served seventeen years in prison, five on death row, before her conviction was eventually overturned. Sunny and her first husband, Jesse Tafero, were both wrongly convicted of the shooting of two police officers in Florida in 1976. Jesse was executed before his conviction in 1990 despite the significant ongoing doubt about his guilt. Sunny’s death row ordeal later became one of six stories told through the acclaimed play The Exonerated. The play was also adapted for television with Susan Sarandon playing Sunny. Sunny has also presented to the United Nations and The Council of Europe about the death penalty and gender. She has worked with and promoted education in 13 countries. Peter Pringle, Sunny’s late husband who was himself on death row in Ireland and exonerated, worked tirelessly with Sunny as co-founder of the Sunny Center; Sunny continues to do the work inspired by him in his spirit, and, in his honor.
Margot joined Amicus in 2007 after working for the Bar Pro Bono Unit (now Advocate). Previously she worked in California at the offices of Clarence & Dyer LLP on death penalty appeals alongside white collar crime matters. On returning to the UK, she continued in the field working pro bono on Jamaican capital cases while working in re-insurance litigation at Barlow Lyde & Gilbert LLP. She also served on the National Pro Bono Committee and on the organising committee for the UK's first Pro Bono Conference.
Carolann heads up the pro bono practice at Arthur Cox and is responsible for the strategic development and oversight of pro bono. As a practising solicitor, Carolann advises on immigration law matters. She has extensive experience developing and managing pro bono initiatives, bringing over 10 years of international rule of law experience to the role. Arthur Cox is proud to have supported the Amicus Project since 2018, as part of a global team working to support under-resourced capital defence teams in the US in cases at both State and Federal levels.
Nina Jayne is a litigation associate working in the London office of Cleary Gottlieb. Her practice centres around advising clients on complex competition and commercial litigation. Nina is dual qualified, having trained in Matheson LLP in Ireland before commencing her career in London. Alongside her corporate work, Nina is proud to maintain an active pro-bono practice, focusing on international human rights law. She also has experience in developing pro bono initiatives, having played an integral role in commencing a workstream under the Afghan Admissions Programme from its inception. Nina commenced working with Amicus once qualified and is thrilled to have brought this event to life, working for a number of months with Amicus and Arthur Cox to make this happen.
Date: Thursday, 12 June 2024, 5:30pm to 8pm
Location: Law Society of Ireland, Blackhall Place, Dublin 7, D07 VY24