"It's our professional responsibility"

Pro Bono

As one of Australia's most successful law firms we are well placed to provide assistance to disadvantaged individuals who might otherwise have little or no access to justice, and non-profit organisations which work for the benefit of disadvantaged members of the community or for the public good, and we are committed to doing so on a pro bono basis.

Henry Davis York has a formal pro bono program and all of our lawyers are encouraged to be involved.

In June 2009 Henry Davis York became a signatory to the National Pro Bono Resource Centre's Aspirational Target of 35 pro bono hours per lawyer per annum. Currently we average in excess of 31 hours per lawyer pro bono work per annum, and that commitment is increasing all the time.

Our pro bono work ranges from representing individuals before various courts and tribunals to providing corporate and commercial advice to charitable organisations. We regularly attend a number of community legal centres, providing advice to clients on a wide variety of matters.

Our recent pro bono work includes:

• assisting families of homicide victims by providing representation at coronial inquiries, assistance with estate issue and victims compensation in conjunction with the Homicide Victims' Support Group (Australia)
• providing assistance to permanent residents threatened with deportation after being gaoled for minor infringements
• attending on advice nights at the Redfern, Kingsford and Inner City Community Legal Centres and the Arts Law Centre
• advising and assisting on a number of matters referred by rural community legal centres
• advising on licensing issues involved in a charity film night
•  providing property and tax advices to Stretch-A-Family, a non-profit organization that provides residential foster care and living skills programs for homeless youth which enabled the organisation to save on acquisition costs of a new head office
• participating in the pilot program of the Homeless Persons' Legal Service in Sydney and attending on a regular roster basis to provide free legal services to homeless clients of The Station Ltd
• assisting a peak community sector body with changes to its constitution
• providing a secondee to the Public Interest Law Clearing House
• drafting Terms of Reference for the establishment of a non-profit animal law service
• assistance individuals to bring claims for compensation under the NSW Aboriginal Trust Fund Repayment Scheme.

As part of our on-going commitment to the community, HDY has since 2003 participated in the development of a student mentoring program, LEAPS, for secondary school students, in partnership with the Department of Education and Training.

Feedback from the schools involved indicates that the program is making an enormous difference to the aspirations and achievements of the students involved.

In 2007 HDY won the Pro Bono Partnership Award at the NSW Law and Justice Foundation Awards for its partnership with the Homicide Victims Support Group.

Partner

Kathy Merrick