A growing number of in-house legal teams are pitching in and taking on pro-bono legal work. In-house legal managers and lawyers have been able to establish pro bono programs in recent years as a result of changes to practicing and insurance rules regarding legal advice in NSW, Queensland and most recently Victoria.

In May 2009 the National Pro Bono Resource Centre (NPBRC) introduced a Professional Indemnity Insurance Scheme to encourage lawyers that work in corporations and government to undertake pro bono legal work. The scheme removed one of the key constraints to pro bono work, which was the need for in-house lawyers to have professional indemnity (PI) insurance to cover them for any civil claims arising from their pro bono legal work.

Between 30 November 2010 and 31 December 2011 the team of 12 lawyers at Perpetual have undertaken 448 hours of pro bono work. The team has been working with the Cancer Council Legal Referral Service to provide pro-bono legal assistance to cancer patients. According to general counsel and company secretary at Perpetual, Joanne Hawkins, the pro bono work has been a positive learning experience for lawyers on the team. “It’s also been very cohesive for our team, because it is something we are doing together,” said Hawkins.

When Perpetual first decided to undertake pro bono legal work, they went to Gilbert + Tobin, one of their regular legal providers for guidance. “We had great support from G+T,” said Hawkins. “They made the whole process quite easy, but there is a bit of work required at the start.”  NPBRC’s director, John Corker, says that many in-house teams can gain valuable advice from their private practice colleagues on establishing pro bono legal services. “Private practice law firms can be a good source of advice and information, as pro bono is well established amongst the private practice sector,” said Corker.
The centre can also assist in the establishment of pro bono legal services programs: “Our overall role is to support the legal profession in undertaking pro bono legal work,” said Corker.

According to Corker, even in-house legal advisors who no longer carry practicing certificates can still undertake pro bono work. “There are many ways lawyers can assist in providing legal advice that does not require them to be on the record,” said Corker. “You don’t have to be the provider of advice; you can be the facilitator, researcher or educator.”

Hewlett Packard Australia’s legal team has also undertaken pro bono legal work in recent years as part of a global commitment by the IT company. “Personally it gives me great satisfaction providing whatever assistance I can to those less fortunate,” said senior legal counsel George Toussis. “It gets me involved in areas which I would not even imagine in the normal course of my employment.”