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Holding Redlich delivers nearly 10,000 hours of pro bono work in FY22
National firm Holding Redlich recorded a significant increase in pro bono activity for financial year 2022, committing an average of 38.5 hours per lawyer across hundreds of cases relating to Indigenous communities, refugees, at-risk women and youth, and the elderly.
Jess Feyder
Holding Redlich exceeded its pro bono target for FY22, committing almost 10,000 hours to deliver critical outcomes across a host of briefs, including:
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- Acting on behalf of the Ngurai Illum Wurrung, Waywurru and Dhudhuroa traditional owner groups in successful proceedings, challenging the state of Victoria’s decision to enter into an agreement that would extinguish their native title rights;
- Providing commercial legal advice to a number of Aboriginal community art centres, including Girringun Aboriginal Art Centre in northern Queensland;
- Representing an immigration detainee in a successful application that found a policy banning visitors from bringing most foods into immigration detention centres was unlawful;
- Preparing visa applications for Afghan asylum seekers, including for an Afghanistan women’s youth soccer team, and on behalf of a group of actors and artists at risk from the Taliban;
- Assisting victims of financial elder abuse, including the recovery of retirement funds improperly claimed by close relatives of elderly Australians.
Holding Redlich’s national managing partner Ian Robertson AO said the firm had a longstanding commitment to supporting people who may not otherwise have access to legal services.
“Pro bono programs play a vital role in providing more equitable access to legal services for Australians of all walks of life, and we’re pleased to be one of a growing number of law firms investing in the wellbeing of vulnerable members of our community,” Mr Robertson said.
“For Holding Redlich, we’re proud to have not only exceeded our pro bono target this year but, importantly, to have delivered outcomes that will materially improve the quality of life for many of our pro bono clients.”
Mr Robertson added that Holding Redlich had committed to a further increase to its pro bono program this financial year, maintaining a strong focus on refugees, asylum seekers and First Nations peoples.
As part of their efforts to support First Nations peoples, Holding Redlich voices ongoing support for the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
There is the need for an Indigenous Voice to Parliament, Holding Redlich maintains, because Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people need a greater say on the laws, policies and programs that shape their lives, national pro bono manager Guy Donovan and pro bono lawyer Nareeta Davis have said.
Holding Redlich has been a signatory of the National Pro Bono Target of 35 hours per lawyer per year to the Australian Pro Bono Centre (APBC) since 2014.
Their growth in pro bono work accompanies a recent rise in pro bono work across the legal profession.
The APBC’s 15th Annual Performance Report detailed that a “record total” of 645,509 hours of pro bono work was completed in FY22 by Australian lawyers, barristers, law firms and in-house teams.
The rise in pro bono work is likely due to lawyers seeking more meaning from their working lives, said APBC chief executive Gabriela Christian-Hare, “the benefits of pro bono involvement cannot be overstated”.
