Charles Russell Speechlys sees 71 lawyers named in 2025 Pro Bono Recognition List

Charles Russell Speechlys is proud to announce that 71 of its lawyers have been named in this year's Pro Bono Recognition List of England & Wales, contributing over 6,400 hours between them. 

The Pro Bono Recognition List of England & Wales was launched in 2024 by the Attorney General's Pro Bono Committee and endorsed by the Lady Chief Justice along with the support of the Law Society, Bar Council, CILEX and major pro bono legal organisations. The list celebrates solicitors, barristers and legal executives who have given at least 25 hours of their time to pro bono each calendar year.

This year’s figures represent a substantial increase from last year, when the Firm saw 32 of its lawyers named in the 2024 list. This is consistent with increasing levels of participation in pro bono work across the Firm, which reflects the growing interest in pro bono and social impact work by the Firm in recent years and alignment with the Firm’s values.

Philip Withey, Partner, Banking & Finance, comments:

Having joined the Firm recently, being involved with the Firm’s pro bono work has been a rewarding experience. It has provided me with an opportunity to work with a couple of small teams made up from fee earners of different levels of seniority from around the Firm and I have been hugely impressed by the commitment and enthusiasm shown by each team member. It is fantastic to be able to meet and work with great colleagues from different teams and to combine that with the chance to make a positive impact on society and deepen our commitment to justice and community service.

Kerry Stares, Partner and Director of Responsible Business and Pro Bono, comments:

We are immensely proud of the dedication shown by our colleagues who have contributed over 25 hours of pro bono work and have been recognised on the Pro Bono Recognition List. Their effort, and that of the many others within our Firm who have engaged in pro bono work, reflects the core values of Charles Russell Speechlys. We remain committed to sharing our time and expertise to support people, small charities and not for profits who would not otherwise be able to get legal advice. 

"It is also important to acknowledge that pro bono is just a small part of the effort needed to address the significant access to justice gap in our local communities and beyond. We are so grateful for our frontline community partners, who work to facilitate access to justice every day, and without whom we would not be able to deliver high quality pro bono initiatives.

Making an impact

We are committed to making a social impact, whether by providing legal advice and support to individuals who are unable to obtain legal aid or afford private legal services, or extending our expertise to smaller charities and social enterprises focussed on social, humanitarian and environmental issues and without sufficient funds or access to funding to obtain advice otherwise. We demonstrate this commitment by assisting our Charles Russell Speechlys Foundation charity partners with legal advice, skill shares and community support, or by partnering with other frontline legal advice organisations to give legal advice through legal advice clinics and access to justice projects.

All our people are encouraged to take part in pro bono and social impact work. Our social impact initiatives reflect our responsibility as a business to support the global and local communities in which we operate and deliver positive social change that is valued by our people, clients, and other key stakeholders. These initiatives (and particularly our advisory pro bono opportunities) are carefully identified to ensure that they appropriately complement our fee earning work with philanthropists, charities and social enterprises that also delivers outcomes with a strong social value element.

Our pro bono work is supported by a network of Pro Bono Champions from across the Firm, who come together to discuss and raise the profile of pro bono work, to encourage others to participate and to discuss future initiatives.

Our access to justice projects and legal advice clinics includes:

• Windrush Compensation initiative
• Kids In Need of Defense (KIND)
• Disability Benefits Appeal
• Schools Consent Project
• Secondment with European Lawyers in Lesvos
• Social Housing Clinic
• Family Law Clinics
• Employment Law Clinic
• Civil Procedure clinic for Litigants in person

If you are interested to learn more about our Pro Bono Practice, please contact Sarah Farrelly, Senior Pro Bono Associate.

Please note that we are unable to accept direct requests for assistance through these access to justice projects and clinics. If you seek free legal advice through these projects, please contact a law centre or legal advice clinic, which you can find through the Law Centres Network or LawWorks.