Pro Bono Week 2023
Location:
School of Law
Old College, South Bridge
Edinburgh
EH8 9YL
Date/time
-
Edinburgh Law School's UK Pro Bono Week 2023
The 22nd annual Pro Bono Week takes place across the UK from 6 to 10 November 2023. This year's Pro Bono Week centres around the following themes:
- Changing lives through pro bono;
- Maximising the impact of pro bono;
- Pro bono within ESG – pro bono as a pillar of Environmental, Social and Governance strategy.
Join Edinburgh Law School alumni, staff, current students, and members of the wider legal community to learn about and celebrate the voluntary contribution made by the legal profession across Edinburgh, Scotland and beyond, in giving free legal help to those in need.
These events are for free but registration is required.
Alumni Perspectives - Jacquelyn MacLennan
Time/Location: 13:00 – 14:00, Usha Kasera Lecture Theatre
Jacquelyn MacLennan (LLB, 1983 & PGD, 1984) was a Partner at White & Case, one of the world's leading global law firm of more than 2,500 lawyers worldwide. Jacquelyn focused in particular on EU competition law, international trade law (customs law, sanctions and export controls) and risk management issues. She is recognised as a leading lawyer in her areas of expertise and human rights. Jacquelyn was the Leader of White & Case’s Global Pro Bono Practice, and actively involved in White & Case’s support for Bhutan’s first law school, and the African Centre on Law & Ethics Programme, where she teaches legal ethics and business and human rights to young lawyers and law students.
During the talk Jacquelyn will reflect on her career since graduating from Edinburgh Law School, becoming the Global Pro Bono Practice Leader for White & Case, and speak about the relationship between ESG and pro bono.
Pro Bono Work - Panel talk
Time/Location: 13:00 – 15:00, MacLaren Stuart Room
During this panel our speakers (Lourens Grové, Julianna Cartwright, and a selection of students) will discuss the current Pro Bono Work which is undertaken by the Law School at the University of Edinburgh, how you can get involved and what it’s all about. There will be a Q&A session, alongside tea and coffee.
Highlights include: the Free Legal Advice Centre (including the Volunteer Law Clinic and Faculty of Advocate Referrals) and the Tax Clinic.
Lourens Grové is currently a Senior Lecturer in Clinical and Experiential Legal Education at the University of Edinburgh. Previously from the University of Pretoria, where he has undertaken numerous roles, perhaps most notably as the Supervising Attorney and then Chief Attorney in the University’s Law Clinic since 2005.
Julianna Cartwright has a wide ranging practice encompassing family law, mental health and professional negligence and is instructed in the Court of Session and the Sheriff Court.
The one hour talk will be followed by refreshments.
Legal Tech x Pro Bono - How can legal technology help maximise the impact of Pro Bono and provide access to justice?
Time/Location: 13:00 – 15:00, Usha Kasera Lecture Theatre and Moot Cout Room
Hermione Hague (tech lawyer, consultant and course organiser for Legal Tech Elective on the Diploma at University of Edinburgh) is hosting a panel to discuss how legal technology help maximise the impact of pro bono and provide access to justice. This event will showcase how legal technology can facilitate and enhance the running of a busy pro bono clinic, the University of Edinburgh’s Free Legal Advice Centre, and simulate the running of a law firm, for the benefit of pro bono clients and students alike. We will look at the opportunities and challenges and how legal design thinking and legal technology can bring efficiencies and enable access to justice. The event will feature demonstrations from leading legal tech providers (Gavel and Valla) to show how legal technology can flex the impact of pro bono and access to justice. We will discuss the impact of AI and how this can effect change and empower professionals – and consider its limitations and ethical and professional considerations. On the panel will be the University’s FLAC team, legal technologists and members of the profession. Please come join in the discussion and find out how you can get involved.
About the host
Hermione Hague [external site] is a technology and privacy lawyer and has experience working in house at tech companies and the technology sector since 1999! She was in house counsel at boo.com [external site], set up the mobile company Three and more recently has worked in the VR and fintech, telecoms and cryptocurrency sectors. This year, she is the course organiser responsible for the IP elective at the University of Edinburgh, which she has run for 7 years. She also teaches and has run courses on the Information Technology LLM programme at the University of Edinburgh. She provides consultancy services via Vario, AndCo Law and Arbor Law. She was lead project manager for a nine month legal technology project for a CRM solution at McGrigors (now used by Pinsent Masons).
The one hour talk in the Usha Kasera Lecture Theatre will be followed by refreshments in the Moot Court Room, Old College, giving you a chance to speak with the panelists over tea and coffee.
