Clifford Chance

The Fundación Pro Bono España: Marking a turning point in free legal aid and access to justice

On 28 June 2018 the Fundación Pro Bono España (the ‘Foundation’) was created, a non-profit organisation which co-ordinates, promotes and provides legal pro bono assistance, that is, free legal aid provided by legal professionals to non-profit entities which have legal needs but no resources to resolve them.

The initiative stems from the Vance Center for International Justice in New York. This organisation works to improve global justice, by involving lawyers worldwide, which allows it to support civil society and further develop the ethics of the legal profession.

Two years before the creation of the Foundation, a team comprising the following law firms: Cuatrecasas, Ramón y Cajal, Pérez-Llorca and Clifford Chance worked together on an intensive basis to turn this project into reality. With this objective in mind, and with the constant collaboration of the Vance Center, via Leire Larracoechea, the current director and co-founder of the Foundation, we accomplished our goal and created the Fundación Pro Bono España.

The Clifford Chance team was led by Pablo Serrano de Haro, as partner in charge of the firm's Corporate Social Responsibility area, Eduardo García, partner in the Banking and Finance Practice Area, Irene Mainar, junior associate in the Banking and Finance Area and Susana Añoveros, office manager at Clifford Chance Barcelona who is in charge of the Spanish offices' pro bono initiatives.

The Foundation's activities comprise three main areas:

1. The channelling of pro bono work, by creating a line of communication between the legal needs of non-profit entities and legal professionals;

2. Improving the awareness, motivation and coordination of pro bono work; and

3. Institutionalising pro bono work, by encouraging a structured and professional perspective of this activity, and systemising and optimising all steps involved.

At Clifford Chance we are proud that the Foundation's Patron is comprised of thirty-two national and international leading law firms, with offices in Spain.  Our idea is to continue growing and moreover to form a team not only with law firms and lawyers on an individual basis, but also with legal counsel at various companies and law clinics at Spanish universities.