LawWorks Pro Bono Awards 2020

The annual LawWorks Pro Bono Awards were livestreamed at 6pm on Wednesday 2nd December 2020.  

The LawWorks Annual Pro Bono Awards are kindly sponsored by Lexis Nexis.

Download the Programme

The winners of the 2020 LawWorks Pro Bono Awards are:

• Best Contribution by a Small or Medium Firm:
  Altralaw
• Best Contribution by a Large Firm:
  Reed Smith
• Best Contribution by an In-house Team or an In-house Solicitor:
  London Borough of Barking and Dagenham In House Legal Team
• Best Contribution by an individual:
  Sam Cottman – Travers Smith
• Junior Lawyers Division Pro Bono Award:
  Raphaella Gabrasadig – Travers Smith
• LawWorks Cymru Award:
  Swansea Law Clinic, Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law, Swansea University
• Best International Pro Bono Award:
  Greece Pro Bono Collaborative Project - Allen & Overy, Ashurst, Charles Russell Speechlys, Dentons, Orrick and White & Case, together with European Lawyers in Lesvos (ELIL)
• Best Contribution by a Pro Bono Clinic:
  The Online Legal Clinic, Brixton Advice Centre
• Best New Pro Bono Activity:
  The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network (TERN) and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
• Best Digital or Virtual Pro Bono Activity:
  South Westminster Legal Advice Centre
• Most Effective Pro Bono Partnership:
  Toynbee Hall and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton

The nominees for the 2020 Annual LawWorks Pro Bono Awards were:

Best contribution by a Small or Medium Firm

• AltraLaw
• Goodman Derrick

Best Contribution by a Large Firm

• DLA Piper
• Howard Kennedy
• Morgan, Lewis & Bockius UK
• Reed Smith

Best Contribution by an In-house Team or an In-house Solicitor

• BPP University
• Deborah Smith (Goldman Sachs)
• London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
• Visa

Junior Lawyers Division Pro Bono Award

• Samuel Bass (Duncan Lewis Solicitors)
• Miriam Bandera (Reed Smith)
• Raphaella Gabrasadig (Travers Smith)
• Katrina Thomson (Baker McKenzie)

Best Contribution by an Individual

• Priscilla Addo-Quaye (Addleshaw Goddard)
• Anne Collins (Clifford Chance)
• Eddie Coppinger (Legal Advice Centre (University house))
• Sam Cottman (Travers Smith)
• Naga Kandiah (MTC Solicitors)
• Elle Todd (Reed Smith)

LawWorks Cymru Award

• Aberystwyth University Family Law Clinic
• Citizens Advice Rhondda Cynon Taff
• Duncan Lewis Solicitors
• Swansea Law Clinic, Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law, Swansea University/ Clinig y Gyfraith, Ysgol y Gyfraith Hillary Rodham Clinton, Prifysgol Abertawe
• University of South Wales Legal Advice Clinic

Best Contribution by a Pro Bono Clinic

• Aberystwyth University Family Law Clinic
• Dracaena Webcam Advice Project: Dracaena Community Centre, Legal Advice Centre (University House), Charles Russell Speechlys and White & Case
• Islington Legal Advice Centre
• The Online Legal Clinic, Brixton Advice Centre
• University of South Wales Legal Advice Clinic

Best International Pro Bono Award - in partnership with A4ID

• The FGM Model Law: Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, Latham & Watkins and Reed Smith
• Greece Pro Bono Collaborative Project: Allen & Overy, Ashurst, Charles Russell Speechlys, Dentons, Orrick and White & Case, together with European Lawyers in Lesvos (ELIL)
• The Human Dignity Trust (HDT) Team at Debevoise & Plimpton
• Human Rights Watch and Clifford Chance

Best Digital / Virtual Pro Bono Activity

• Justice Hub Covid-19 Virtual Vac Scheme, University of Manchester
• Advice Portal, Legal Advice Centre (University House)
• RCJ Advice and Advocate
• South Westminster Legal Advice Centre

Best New Pro Bono Activity

• Dads House Legal Advice Clinic, Dads House
• Domestic Violence Advocacy Unit , Travers Smith
• The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network (TERN) and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
• Hertfordshire Law Clinic, University of Hertfordshire
• The Online Legal Clinic, Brixton Advice Centre
• Shoosmiths and Solent Mind

Most Effective Pro Bono Partnership

• DV Flag East and London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
• Innocence Project London and Weil, Gotshal & Manges 
• National Centre for Domestic Violence, Dentons and NatWest Legal
• RCJ Advice and Advocate
• Shoosmiths and The Manuel Bravo Project
• Toynbee Hall and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton

The judges

The judging panel for the awards are:

• Stephanie Boyce, Deputy President of the Law Society
• Ruth Daniel, Chief Executive of the Access to Justice Foundation
• Paul Rogerson, Editor of the Law Society Gazette 
• Adam Tear, former Chair of the Solicitors Association of Higher Court advocates
• Chris Minnoch, Director of the Legal Aid Practitioners Group
• Koser Shaheen, Chair of the Law Society's Ethnic Minority Lawyers Division
• Heidi Sandy, Chair of the Law Society's Women Lawyers Division
• Yasmin Batliwala, Chief Executive of Advocates for International Development
• Mark Evans, Chair of Wales Committee of The Law Society and Council Member for North Wales 

Need to get in touch?

If you have a question about the awards, please email:

• James Sandbach, Director of Policy and External Affairs, or
• Peter Jackson, Communications Officer

We look forward to receiving your nominations!

The LawWorks Pro Bono Awards are kindly sponsored by: