Session on 20th March 2025
In a recent Platforum9 Session, Atanas Politov, European Director for Positive Impact at Dentons, shared valuable insights on why pro bono work remains a fundamental aspect of the legal profession. With extensive experience developing pro bono initiatives across multiple continents, Politov offered a compelling perspective on how organised pro bono efforts benefit society, firms, and individual lawyers.
A Global Movement with Local Variations
“We are the only profession in the world that has organised skills-based volunteering and what we call pro bono,” Politov notes. A recent TrustLaw study included data from over 210 law firms reporting pro bono activities – “still the tip of the iceberg,” as Politov observes, since many firms engaged in pro bono work didn’t participate in the survey.
While pro bono work might seem universal, its implementation varies significantly by region. In the United States, where the modern pro bono movement began in the 1960s, legal assistance to individuals is often the primary focus due to gaps in civil legal aid. By contrast, European pro bono work follows a different model.
“In Europe, 80 to 90 percent of our pro bono work is where the client is an NGO or charity, not an individual,” Politov explains. This fundamental difference reflects stronger European legal aid systems and creates distinct opportunities for impact.
The Moral Obligation and Professional Identity
When asked about obligations for lawyers to provide pro bono services, Politov emphasised that while most jurisdictions don’t mandate pro bono hours (with exceptions in New York and Singapore), the motivation runs deeper than regulatory requirements.
“The obligations are predominantly on the side of moral settings and doing the right thing,” Politov explains. “There is something very specific about lawyers and lawyering and what lawyering means.”
This sense of professional responsibility transcends cultural boundaries. Through his work establishing pro bono infrastructures across continents – from Nigeria to China – Politov has observed a common understanding that lawyers possess specialised knowledge critical to society.
“Volunteering, planting trees, painting walls – it’s all very good and important. Philanthropy and giving money is super important as well… but giving your professional time is something that is second to none,” he states. “I’ve seen it in terms of impact that you have, but also in terms of the impact you have internally for your own heart.”
Structuring Effective Pro Bono Programs
For law firms considering how to develop or enhance their pro bono efforts, Politov shared several best practices from Dentons’ European operations.
The firm designates a partner responsible for pro bono in each jurisdiction to evaluate opportunities and risks with local understanding. This creates a bridge between the centralised pro bono function and each office’s unique context.
Politov highlighted an especially effective approach from Dentons’ Italian offices, where they established “a task force of senior associates, one per each practice group, who have that extra hat of a pro bono associate or member of the pro bono task force.” This structure spreads responsibility throughout the firm and engages lawyers at multiple levels.
Crucially, Dentons treats pro bono work as billable time. “Up to 40 hours every year count as billable hours,” Politov explains. “For the associates, it counts towards their targets… That’s where basically we put our money where our mouth is.” This policy aligns with industry trends, as over 80% of firms in the TrustLaw survey reported rewarding pro bono hours in some way.
Innovative Collaborations
Modern pro bono work increasingly involves collaborative models that maximise impact. Politov described two innovative approaches:
- Law Clinic Partnerships: “We have a couple of projects in Italy which are collaborative projects with anywhere between four to eight or ten law firms engaged on equal footing. There is an NGO… who has their professional lawyer on staff who is dealing with the clients directly.” This model leverages the strengths of multiple organisations while providing structured support to individuals.
- Corporate Client Partnerships: “We have been approached more and more, and by now on a weekly or monthly basis, by some of our biggest commercial clients… who want their in-house teams, their lawyers, in-house lawyers, to do pro bono work.” These partnerships expand impact dramatically, as demonstrated by a project with PayPal that covered over 140 jurisdictions for an organisation working to end sexual violence against children.
Measuring Impact
Evaluating the effectiveness of pro bono programs presents challenges, particularly for work supporting NGOs rather than individual cases. “We’re not building buildings and counting bricks,” Politov explains.
Dentons addresses this challenge by prioritising specific focus areas where they can develop deeper expertise and relationships. “We have prioritised children’s rights in Europe as one of our key priorities for years,” Politov notes. By concentrating resources in strategic areas and developing long-term partnerships with organisations, the firm can better track their contributions to broader social change.
Beyond Altruism: Professional Development Benefits
Pro bono work offers significant professional development opportunities, particularly for junior lawyers who might otherwise have limited client interaction. “During their daily work, they don’t really meet real clients. Pro bono cases give them that chance,” Politov explains.
He shared the experience of a junior lawyer who had recently returned from a two-week assignment supporting refugees and asylum seekers: “She was basically saying this made my life and it made me understand what it means to be a lawyer… this is the most important thing I’ve done in my short legal career.”
These experiences build skills that benefit the firm while satisfying younger lawyers’ desire for meaningful work – a powerful combination for talent development and retention.
Why It Matters Now More Than Ever
In a world facing growing challenges, Politov argues that pro bono legal work is increasingly vital: “If it was ever important, it’s super important now.”
Recent political shifts have created new legal needs, particularly for organisations navigating uncertain regulatory environments. “We’ve been approached by many NGOs and charities that have been hit by recent freezes or closures of funding,” Politov notes. “They are thinking about their Plan Bs and Plan Cs and where to re-register, how to manage future potential situations.”
As commercial clients increasingly evaluate law firms’ ESG credentials, pro bono programs also serve as tangible demonstrations of shared values. The integration of pro bono into broader corporate responsibility frameworks creates new opportunities for alignment between firms and their clients.
When lawyers leverage their specialised knowledge to address critical social challenges, they fulfill the profession’s highest aspirations while developing skills that enhance their commercial practice. In this sense, pro bono work isn’t peripheral to legal practice but central to its identity and future.
As Politov concludes, “For the most part, we’re not a profession with a very important, big, positive social standing… But this is very important and it tells you an answer for the question… It is part of our DNA. It’s just who we are.”
