Pro bono opportunities

LawWorks develops and supports the delivery of a number of pro bono programmes and initiatives. There are many other pro bono opportunities across England and Wales.

Programmes

Depending on your particular interest and capacity, there are a range of programmes we support which solicitors from member firms can get involved with: 

The Not-for-Profits Programme connects small not-for-profit organisations in need of legal support with the skills and expertise of lawyers, to support the continuation and expansion of their services to people in need. 

Secondary specialisation is a programme to support lawyers in firms and in-house teams to develop expertise in areas of social welfare law and employment where need is significant and supply increasingly limited. 

You can support this work by becoming a member.

Clinics Network

LawWorks runs a Clinic Network, which supports and develops independent pro bono clinics across England and Wales. 

Clinics on the LawWorks Clinic Network are independent, locally run and provide free initial advice to individuals, predominantly in the area of social welfare law on either a drop-in or appointment basis. Advice is delivered face-to-face, over the telephone and in some circumstances via Skype. Solicitors can volunteer at clinics as individuals or as part of a firm/in-house team initiative depending on the clinic and its needs. 

Legal and skills training is offered to clinics on the Clinics Network to give volunteer solicitors the confidence to provide advice at clinics.

Pro Bono Opportunities

Our listings of pro bono opportunities give an overview of current volunteering opportunities across the country. Please see below.

If you would like to learn about other ways to volunteer, please visit the Get involved section of the website or visit the National Pro Bono Centre website

At University of Brighton Legal Clinic, students, staff and external solicitor volunteers provide free legal advice and assistance to individuals who are not eligible for legal aid and cannot afford to pay for legal advice. The clinic covers family, housing, employment & business/contract law.

Dads House Legal Advice Clinic provides free family law advice to people who have no or very little means. The clinic is based in Fulham and runs an in-person service every Wednesday and Friday afternoon.

At Royal Holloway University Legal Advice Centre, students, staff and external solicitor volunteers provide free legal advice and assistance to individuals who are not eligible for legal aid and cannot afford to pay for legal advice. The clinic covers a wide variety of areas of law including contract, consumer, general civil litigation, housing, personal injury and wills & probate.

At Liverpool John Moores University Legal Advice Centre, students, staff and external solicitor volunteers provide free legal advice and assistance to individuals who are not eligible for legal aid and cannot afford to pay for legal advice. The clinic overs a wide variety of areas of law including charity law, intellectual property, commercial, civil disputes, wills & contentious wills, family and housing.

At Bath Law Clinic, based at University of Bath, students, staff and external solicitor volunteers provide free legal advice and assistance to individuals who are not eligible for legal aid and cannot afford to pay for legal advice. Bath Law Clinic covers a wide variety of areas of law including family, employment, immigration, wills and trusts, housing, neighbour disputes, small claims, forming/structuring a charity of social enterprise.

The Law Corner provides free legal advice to residents of Somers Town and St Pancras. The Law Corner aims to support individuals through the entire process of their case, offering a range of services from initial advice, form filling, written advice, to casework and representation.

Flag DV are looking for family law solicitors to volunteer and provide free, impartial family law advice to people affected by domestic abuse.

At Hertfordshire Law Clinic, based at University of Hertfordshire, students, staff and external solicitor volunteers provide free legal advice and assistance to individuals who are not eligible for legal aid and cannot afford to pay for legal advice. Hertfordshire Law Clinic covers a wide variety of areas of law including private family law issues, employment, consumer/contract, wills and probate, housing, special educational needs and disability and intellectual property.

Islington Legal Advice Centre (ILAC) provides free legal advice at weekly drop in sessions on Thursday evenings at 7:00pm in the Crypt of St Mary's Church on Upper Street, London N1 2TX. The service is available to Islington residents but individuals from other boroughs are not excluded.

St James Legal Advice Centre (SJLAC) has been providing free legal advice in Haringey (Muswell Hill, Colney Hatch and Wood Green) for over 20 years. During that time their pro bono clinics have helped thousands of people with their justice problems – housing, consumer rights, benefits claims, family issues, employment rights; empowering clients to understand their legal rights. Legal aid is now rarely available for these types of issues and so SJLAC’s work is vital in helping to address this ‘justice gap’. SJLAC are made up of a dedicated team of volunteer solicitors, barristers, trainees and law students.