“Using our legal skills to better lives, communities and our profession.” Partner
A firm that takes its role in society seriously
Over the last year, lawyers from Kirkland & Ellis London have provided Pro Bono services to a diverse range of organisations and benefitted enormously from the experience of clients and challenges outside of their usual legal work. More importantly, they have really made a difference to the people for whom they have worked. Pro Bono hours are billable hours for associates and our Firm aims for each associate to spend at least 20 hours per year on Pro Bono work. Pro Bono opportunities are available to attorneys at all levels, including Vacation Scheme students and trainees. We have highlighted some of the Pro Bono projects in which attorneys at the Firm have been involved. Kirkland has partnered with the University House Legal Advice Centre, one of London’s oldest legal aid organisations, to provide volunteer staff for its weekly housing clinic in the East End of London. Since the housing clinic’s inception in 2017, 90 Kirkland attorneys from the London office have dedicated over 1,300 Pro Bono hours and assisted over 300 Legal Advice Centre clients in need. The clinic provides free legal support to vulnerable individuals facing housing issues including homelessness, evictions, and poor living conditions. Since the autumn of 2015, Kirkland attorneys have represented clients in welfare benefits appeals. The national average success rate for such appeals with representation stands at around 70%.
Teams of Kirkland attorneys have achieved between 90% and 100% success rates in each of the six full calendar years that Kirkland has worked on these projects. Since 2018, Kirkland attorneys have represented clients in unpaid wages claims to assist individuals who have been subject to wage theft, denied the minimum wage, or who are owed holiday, sickness or notice pay. In total, 167 Kirkland attorneys have dedicated 9,100 Pro Bono hours, assisting more than 150 clients in need through these projects. In 2021, Kirkland attorneys around the world, devoted over 15,500 hours to immigration focused pro bono work, including an ongoing fight in the US for a nationwide class of immigrant teenagers unlawfully transferred to adult detention centres on their 18th birthdays. The court ruled in favour of the plaintiffs and ordered a permanent injunction against the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security. Amicus is an apolitical, non-campaigning, non-profit organisation that helps provide legal representation to those facing the death penalty in the United States. It aims to provide better access to justice, and raises awareness of potential abuses of defendants’ rights through frontline work. Since 2020, 111 attorneys have each committed at least 20 hours per annum to one of a number of Amicus supported files.
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In 2021, Kirkland & Ellis worldwide devoted more than 122,000 hours to organisations and individuals on pro bono matters. Our commitment as a firm to providing legal services without charge to those who cannot afford legal counsel is based on our goals of helping to improve clients’ lives, bettering communities and deepening the professional experience of our team. “At Kirkland, we are committed to advancing the local and global communities in which we live and work. To fulfil that mission we dedicate substantial energy, talent and resources to an array of meaningful causes and initiatives that reflect our values and vision.”
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