10 years of mapping pro bono

2024 marked the 10th anniversary of the index.

2014 doesn’t seem like that long ago, but it was groundbreaking at the time.

Six indexes later, it remains the only global benchmark report mapping pro bono around the world.

The index provides a free resource to help build robust pro bono practices and to understand how to get the greatest impact from pro bono work.

The 2024 index collected data from over 209 firms, representing lawyers in 123 jurisdictions.

It shows lawyers globally donated 3.5 million hours of their time assisting charities, non-profits, social enterprises and individuals free of charge.

How did England and Wales perform?

The firms that reported in England and Wales recorded a total of 505,925 hours of pro bono work.

In terms of average pro bono hours per lawyer, England and Wales ranked third on the index, behind the US and Australia.

This means that lawyers in England and Wales completed, on average, 23.6 hours of pro bono in 2024.

That compares to 21.3 hours in 2014 – just over a 10% increase in 10 years.

But this apparently modest increase disguises significant growth.

The number of firms reporting through the index has more than doubled – from 27 firms in 2014 to 61 in 2024.

Many of those newly reporting firms started from a lower base, bringing down the average even as those firms increased their contribution.

Looking at the larger firms that reported in England and Wales, in both 2014 and 2024 there were much greater increases in average pro bono hours:

• Ashurst from 14.22 to 30.5
• DLA from 20.37 to 29.6
• Freshfields from 21.98 to 40.4
• Latham from 37.05 to 50.2
• Reed Smith from 31.24 to 77.6
• Dechert from 14.22 to 94.8

This growth, linked to the professionalisation of pro bono practice within commercial law firms, looks set to continue.

Pro bono’s roots lie within the privileged position of the legal profession within the wider justice system.

There are many factors sent to continue to drive the growth of pro bono, such as: 

• growth driven by wider generational change
• growth of clinical legal education
• increasing specialisation of large commercial firms in larger and more complex mandates (creating training and development benefits from undertaking smaller mandates) 

How is pro bono being encouraged in England and Wales?

TrustLaw mentions a few of the free initiatives that encourage and incentivise lawyers to participate in pro bono work:

The UK Collaborative Plan for Pro Bono (UKCP)

The UKCP, launched in 2014, is a network of 89 firms whose pro bono leaders meet quarterly to share best practice and collaborate to create new pro bono initiatives.

Find out more about the UKCP.

The Pro Bono Recognition List

The list is supported by the lady chief justice and launched in 2024.

It recognises barristers and solicitors who gave 25 hours or more pro bono legal assistance over the last year.

The 2025 list was published in April. Almost 4,000 solicitors have been recognised, including over 150 from my own firm, Freshfields.

The provisional timeline for submissions for the 2026 list is Monday 12 January 2026 to Friday 6 March 2026.

If you meet the eligibility requirements and want to join the 2026 list, visit Pro Bono Recognition List website.

The In House Pro Bono Group

Taking inspiration from the UKCP, the In House Pro Bono Group launched an In House Pro Bono Pledge in 2024.

The pledge aims to encourage companies to pledge their commitment to pro bono and to take practical steps to ensure their teams can undertake pro bono work.

Find out more on the In House Pro Bono Group website.