Americas
The pro bono landscape in the Americas is strong and growing, including through the work of organisations at regional and country level that champion the practice of pro bono. These organisations provide institutional frameworks, collaborative approaches, and a rich environment for law firms to grow and sustain their pro bono practices and are steadily producing results. The Pro Bono Declaration for the Americas, launched in 2008, continues to serve as an important touchstone for pro bono in the region, with signatories agreeing to advance the practice of pro bono and to provide an average of 20 hours or more per lawyer per annum.
Local organisations and initiatives also champion pro bono, including: Alianza Pro Bono in Peru, CIDSEP UC in Paraguay; Red Federal Pro Bono Internacional in Argentina, Fundación Pro Bono de Guatemala in Guatemala, the Pro Bono Commission in Costa Rica, among others. The practice of incorporating law students into the pro bono ecosystem through legal clinics at universities, is also on the rise. The presence of pro bono institutions and a robust pro bono ecosystem, helps to engage, attract, and retain more lawyers in the practice of pro bono and promotes the sustainability of pro bono practice in the long term.
A total of 80 firms from the Americas contributed data to the 2022 Pro Bono Index, up from 64 firms in 2020. However, the geographic spread was smaller, with participants from 13 countries, down from 18 countries in 2020. This year, Peru and Ecuador debut with an in-depth analysis.
Overall, responding firms in the region spent 126,886 hours on pro bono. 42 percent of fee earners spent an average of 11.6 hours on pro bono, with 24 percent of them offering ten or more hours of pro bono work. For partners, 32 percent offered pro bono services at an average of seven hours, with 15 percent performing ten or more hours of pro bono.
An overwhelming 93 percent of firms in the Americas reported at least one element of pro bono infrastructure, relatively evenly distributed across Large, Medium-sized and Small Firms. 80 percent of firms reported having a pro bono policy and 41 percent reported having a formal diversity commitment for pro bono work.
The top five most selected areas of pro bono focus in the region were: access to justice at 58 percent; education, training and employment at 38 percent; economic development, microfinance and social finance at 37 percent; human rights at 37 percent; and immigration, refugees and asylum at 34 percent. Registered charities and non-profits were leading recipients of pro bono assistance, with 93 percent of firms providing pro bono to this group, followed by social enterprises at 67 percent, and individuals in need at 61 percent.
Pro bono clients were sourced directly from individual clients (71 percent), through clearinghouses (62 percent), and through local law societies or bar associations (43 percent). Collaborative approaches to pro bono are also evident, with 33 percent of the firms obtaining pro bono work in partnership with other law firms.
Firm Name |
Country |
Average Hours per Fee-Earner |
Fee Earners with 10+ Hours of Pro Bono |
AVOA ABOGADOS S.A. |
Argentina |
2.27 |
18.2% |
Accenture |
Argentina |
- |
- |
BULLÓ ABOGADOS |
Argentina |
15.71 |
- |
Beccar Varela |
Argentina |
32.35 |
33.6% |
Bomchil |
Argentina |
- |
- |
Brons & Salas |
Argentina |
20 |
100% |
Bruchou, Fernandez Madero & Lombardi |
Argentina |
13.41 |
37% |
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP |
Argentina |
2.61 |
14.3% |
Dentons |
Argentina |
1.52 |
3.8% |
Gonzalo Javier |
Argentina |
17.99 |
25% |
Grispo Abogados |
Argentina |
- |
- |
Keidos Impacto Legal |
Argentina |
76.67 |
100% |
Perez Alati, Grondona, Benites & Arnsten |
Argentina |
27.72 |
34.8% |
Richards Cardinal Tutzer Zabala & Zaefferer |
Argentina |
30 |
50% |
Zang, Bergel & Viñes |
Argentina |
13.5 |
27.5% |
Dentons |
Bolivia |
- |
- |
Dentons Guevara & Gutierrez |
Bolivia |
15 |
40% |
Accenture |
Brazil |
- |
- |
Cescon, Barrieu, Flesch & Barreto Advogados |
Brazil |
17.88 |
61% |
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP |
Brazil |
7.48 |
20% |
Demarest |
Brazil |
1.76 |
6.1% |
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP |
Brazil |
7 |
50% |
K&L Gates LLP |
Brazil |
- |
0% |
KLA Advogados |
Brazil |
0.93 |
2.3% |
Linklaters LLP |
Brazil |
- |
- |
MOSSE IP, Fashion & Social Media Law |
Brazil |
1.88 |
12.5% |
Machado, Meyer, Sendacz e Opice Advogados |
Brazil |
7.91 |
20.3% |
Mattos Filho, Veiga Filho, Marrey Jr e Quiroga Advogados |
Brazil |
0.03 |
21% |
Mayer Brown LLP |
Brazil |
6.86 |
18.2% |
Paul Hastings LLP |
Brazil |
37.83 |
100% |
Pinheiro Neto Advogados |
Brazil |
10 |
24% |
Shearman & Sterling LLP |
Brazil |
7 |
20% |
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP |
Brazil |
0.04 |
0% |
TozziniFreire Advogados |
Brazil |
0.01 |
10.5% |
White & Case |
Brazil |
16 |
27.3% |
BNM Advocates |
Canada |
- |
- |
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP |
Canada |
17.06 |
32.2% |
DLA Piper |
Canada |
7.36 |
18.6% |
Dentons |
Canada |
8.01 |
16.6% |
Integral North |
Canada |
200 |
100% |
McCarthy Tétrault LLP |
Canada |
12.11 |
21.8% |
McInnes Cooper |
Canada |
5.22 |
34.8% |
McMillan LLP |
Canada |
- |
- |
Shearman & Sterling LLP |
Canada |
18.2 |
70% |
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP |
Canada |
1.58 |
0% |
Accenture |
Colombia |
- |
- |
Brigard & Urrutia |
Colombia |
22.07 |
- |
Dentons |
Colombia |
4.21 |
14.3% |
Gómez-Pinzón |
Colombia |
41.75 |
100% |
Lloreda Camacho |
Colombia |
6 |
20% |
Muñoz Tamayo & Asociados |
Colombia |
35.29 |
21.4% |
PHILIPPI PRIETOCARRIZOSA FERRERO DU & URÍA |
Colombia |
17.65 |
22% |
Posse Herrera Ruiz |
Colombia |
23.45 |
48.8% |
SLLM Sánchez-Labrador y López Martínez, S.C. |
Colombia |
- |
- |
Alta Batalla |
Costa Rica |
34.29 |
71.4% |
CENTRAL LAW |
Costa Rica |
250 |
100% |
Consortium Legal |
Costa Rica |
2.67 |
8.8% |
Consortium Legal |
El Salvador |
5.22 |
17.1% |
MORGAN & MORGAN |
Panama |
12.97 |
39.4% |
Ferrere Abogados |
Paraguay |
- |
- |
Pablo |
Paraguay |
3 |
20% |
Dentons |
Peru |
3.98 |
16.7% |
Estudio Osterling |
Peru |
- |
- |
GARCIA SAYAN ABOGADOS |
Peru |
8.91 |
25% |
LEON E IPARRAGUIRRE ABOGADOS |
Peru |
- |
- |
Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría |
Peru |
5.41 |
18.4% |
Rodrigo, Elias y Medrano Abogados |
Peru |
7.35 |
6% |
Dentons |
Venezuela |
21.68 |
20% |
LEĜA |
Venezuela |
16.67 |
22.2% |
Argentina
The Pro Bono Declaration for the Americas continues to support the steady growth of pro bono in Argentina. Generally, pro bono is seen as an impactful way of practicing the law and driving change. Large law firms in Buenos Aires tend to have the most institutionalized pro bono practices, but small and medium-sized law firms and legal teams throughout the country are also committing to and engaging in more pro bono work.
Pro bono work in Argentina entails not only supporting with advisory cases and litigation, but also sharing knowledge and developing legal resources of all kinds. Pro bono culture is promoted to new generation of law students through contests to identify social issues and potential legal solutions. Initiatives from bar associations like the Federal Pro Bono Network by Pro Bono Commission of Lawyers of the City of Buenos Aires are committed to promoting the practice of pro bono in Argentina and continue to create a robust ecosystem for the sustained growth of pro bono in Argentina.
Fifteen law firms with offices in Argentina participated in the 2022 Index, a marked increase from the previous Index. All but one are local law firms, with a single regional law firm providing data about their work in Argentina.
Fee earners performed 14.5 hours of pro bono on average, with 20 percent performing ten or more hours of pro bono. Fee earners performed an average 14.7 hours of pro bono with 20 percent of them recording ten or more hours. Among partners, 34 percent offered pro bono services, at an average of 9.3 hours—higher than the regional average, with 16 percent of fee earners offering ten or more hours of pro bono.
92 percent of firms had the presence of pro bono infrastructure, pointing to a well-established practice of pro bono. The most selected areas of pro bono focus among Argentinian firms were access to justice, data and digital rights, and disability rights all at 42 percent, followed by immigration, refugees and asylum at 33 percent, and anti-corruption and good governance at 25 percent.
Firm Name |
Average Hours per Fee-Earner |
Fee Earners with 10+ Hours of Pro Bono |
AVOA ABOGADOS S.A. |
2.27 |
18.2% |
Accenture |
- |
- |
BULLÓ ABOGADOS |
15.71 |
- |
Beccar Varela |
32.35 |
33.6% |
Bomchil |
- |
- |
Brons & Salas |
20 |
100% |
Bruchou, Fernandez Madero & Lombardi |
13.41 |
37% |
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP |
2.61 |
14.3% |
Dentons |
1.52 |
3.8% |
Gonzalo Javier |
17.99 |
25% |
Grispo Abogados |
- |
- |
Keidos Impacto Legal |
76.67 |
100% |
Perez Alati, Grondona, Benites & Arnsten |
27.72 |
34.8% |
Richards Cardinal Tutzer Zabala & Zaefferer |
30 |
50% |
Zang, Bergel & Viñes |
13.5 |
27.5% |
Brazil
After regulatory restrictions limiting the practice of pro bono in Brazil were lifted in 2015, most large law firms in Brazil scaled up their pro bono work as part of their corporate social responsibility programmes. Today large law firms lead the pro bono movement in the country, alongside a growing number of small and medium-sized firms to contribute to social impact.
Seventeen law firms participated in the 2022 Index, up from 14 in 2020, comprising mostly of local firms of varying sizes, ranging from those with established pro bono practices and those that are growing. The average number of hours of pro bono per fee earner was 3.9 hours with 34 percent of the fee earners in the responding firms performing pro bono. 17 percent of the fee earners offering pro bono offered ten or more hours of pro bono. 34 percent of partners in responding firms performed pro bono, at an average of 5.3 hours, with 9 percent of partners offering ten or more hours of pro bono.
Pro bono in Brazil is increasingly formalised, with 96 percent of responding firms reporting at least one element of pro bono infrastructure. These factors, combined with a rich, enabling pro bono ecosystem, including local clearing houses and annual pro bono conferences, will ensure that pro bono continues to grow in Brazil.
The most selected areas of pro bono focus in Brazil were access to justice and human rights at 57.1 percent, followed by immigration, refugees and asylum and LGBT+ rights at 42.8 percent and women’s rights at 39 percent. The most selected pro bono clients were non-profit organisations at 96 percent, followed by individuals in need at 71 percent, then social enterprises at 64 percent.
Firm Name |
Average Hours per Fee-Earner |
Fee Earners with 10+ Hours of Pro Bono |
Accenture |
- |
- |
Cescon, Barrieu, Flesch & Barreto Advogados |
17.88 |
61% |
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP |
7.48 |
20% |
Demarest |
1.76 |
6.1% |
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP |
7 |
50% |
K&L Gates LLP |
- |
0% |
KLA Advogados |
0.93 |
2.3% |
Linklaters LLP |
- |
- |
MOSSE IP, Fashion & Social Media Law |
1.88 |
12.5% |
Machado, Meyer, Sendacz e Opice Advogados |
7.91 |
20.3% |
Mattos Filho, Veiga Filho, Marrey Jr e Quiroga Advogados |
0.03 |
21% |
Mayer Brown LLP |
6.86 |
18.2% |
Paul Hastings LLP |
37.83 |
100% |
Pinheiro Neto Advogados |
10 |
24% |
Shearman & Sterling LLP |
7 |
20% |
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP |
0.04 |
0% |
TozziniFreire Advogados |
0.01 |
10.5% |
White & Case |
16 |
27.3% |
Canada
The pro bono landscape in Canada continues to evolve. The pro bono market is robust, with many firms continuing to grow their practices and an enriching, supportive and enabling pro bono environment created by the legal professional bodies and the state.
Federal and provincial bar associations and pro bono organisations (e.g., Pro Bono Canada, Pro Bono Law Ontario, Access Pro Bono in British Columbia, and Justice Pro Bono in Québec) raise awareness of pro bono practices within the profession by providing lawyers in various provinces with access to pro bono resources and programming. As in other jurisdictions, Canada has seen an increase in demand for pro bono services resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year, the Index received submissions from ten Canadian firms. The average number of hours spent by the 46 percent of the fee earners who spent any time on pro bono work in the reporting firms was 11.5 hours, with 24 percent of them spending ten hours or more on pro bono. 24 percent of partners recorded pro bono hours at an average of 5.2 hours, with 12 percent offering ten or more hours of pro bono.
67 percent of participating firms reported having at least one element of pro bono infrastructure. Access to justice was the most selected area of pro bono focus among Canadian firms at 100 percent, followed by immigration, refugees and asylum at 67 percent, then anti-corruption and good governance, disability rights, economic development, microfinance and social finance, employment, human rights and land and water rights all at 33 percent.
Firm Name |
Average Hours per Fee-Earner |
Fee Earners with 10+ Hours of Pro Bono |
BNM Advocates |
- |
- |
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP |
17.06 |
32.2% |
DLA Piper |
7.36 |
18.6% |
Dentons |
8.01 |
16.6% |
Integral North |
200 |
100% |
McCarthy Tétrault LLP |
12.11 |
21.8% |
McInnes Cooper |
5.22 |
34.8% |
McMillan LLP |
- |
- |
Shearman & Sterling LLP |
18.2 |
70% |
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP |
1.58 |
0% |
Chile
Chile has a broad network of law firms offering pro bono services with a strong presence spreading the practice of pro bono in the region. The Chilean Pro Bono Foundation is a key player that provides a wide variety of pro bono assistance on different legal matters and works in partnership with regional pro bono networks.
Law students are encouraged to engage in pro bono by means of a contest to identify social issues that could be addressed through the law and propose solutions, and states of emergency are tackled through a pro bono legal advice programme developed in 2010.
For this 2022 Index of Pro Bono, we received responses from six firms, and we saw that fee earners recorded an average of 16.5 hours of pro bono with 45 percent recording ten or more hours of pro bono, from the 56 percent who recorded any pro bono hours. 36 percent of partners recorded an average of 2.7 hours of pro bono, with 22 percent of them recording ten or more hours of pro bono. The percentage of partners that performed any pro bono stood at 22 percent with 36 percent of them recording ten or more hours. 60 percent of firms reported the presence of pro bono infrastructure.
The most selected areas of pro bono focus among Chilean firms were access to justice and data and digital rights at 67 percent, followed by aid and development, COVID-19, disability rights, economic development, microfinance and social finance, education, training and employment, freedom of the media and expression, human rights, immigration, refugees and asylum and LGBT+ rights all at 33 percent.
Firm Name |
Average Hours per Fee-Earner |
Fee Earners with 10+ Hours of Pro Bono |
Accenture |
- |
- |
Albagli Zaliasnik |
37.36 |
85.1% |
Cariola Díez Pérez-Cotapos and Sargent & Krahn (associated IP firm) |
14.93 |
37.3% |
Dentons |
5.5 |
16.7% |
ObradorDigital.Legal |
0.6 |
40% |
SokSiphana&associates |
- |
100% |
Colombia
Pro bono in Colombia has been growing in recent years. Most large local law firms have institutionalized pro bono practice as part of their corporate social responsibility programmes and implemented internal policies and structures to improve their pro bono work. Today there is a robust network of law firms and Fundación Pro Bono Colombia, the strongest local clearinghouse, working in partnership with regional and global pro bono networks.
We had nine firms participate in the 2022 Index, up from four firms in 2020. The percentage of fee earners who performed any pro bono stood at 56 percent, each giving an average of 23 hours of pro bono work, with 35 percent offering ten or more hours of pro bono. Partners performed an average of 6 hours of pro bono. 35 percent of partners performed any pro bono work, while 17 percent offered more than 10 hours of pro bono. All the responding firms in Colombia reported at least one element of pro bono infrastructure, which indicates that the practice of pro bono is well established. This also correlates with the high number of hours by the fee earners which is well above the regional average.
The most selected areas of pro bono focus among Colombian firms were employment at 80 percent, followed by anti-corruption and good governance, data and digital rights, economic development, microfinance and social finance, education, training and employment, environment and climate change and older people’s rights all at 60 percent.
Firm Name |
Average Hours per Fee-Earner |
Fee Earners with 10+ Hours of Pro Bono |
Accenture |
- |
- |
Brigard & Urrutia |
22.07 |
- |
Dentons |
4.21 |
14.3% |
Gómez-Pinzón |
41.75 |
100% |
Lloreda Camacho |
6 |
20% |
Muñoz Tamayo & Asociados |
35.29 |
21.4% |
PHILIPPI PRIETOCARRIZOSA FERRERO DU & URÍA |
17.65 |
22% |
Posse Herrera Ruiz |
23.45 |
48.8% |
Mexico
Mexico is at the forefront of the pro bono movement in the region. The pro bono culture continues to blossom with the growth of pro bono practice inside large and small and medium-sized law firms as well as the work done by well-known clearinghouses such as Appleseed Mexico and other non-profits specialized in legal pro bono.
In 2018, a group of law firms, clearing houses and non-profits created the Pro Bono Standards to provide for guidelines of what should be considered as legal pro bono and how to structure its practice, as well as to establish a working group to promote pro bono work and address the most pressing concerns in Mexico. This has contributed to the strengthening of the pro bono ecosystem.
Pro bono in Mexico is carried out through local, regional, and global networks and is regarded as a tool to offer support to low-income individuals and families, indigenous communities, vulnerable groups, and non-profit organizations, to name just a few.
This year fifteen law firms participated in the 2022 Index, a welcome increase from the nine submissions in 2020. Fee earners recorded an average of 21 hours of pro bono, with 50 percent offering any pro bono services and 43 percent offering ten or more hours of pro bono. On the other hand, 52 percent of partners recorded an average of 17.4 hours of pro bono, with 38 percent offering ten or more hours of pro bono.
66 percent of the reporting firms had at least one element of pro bono infrastructure. The most selected areas of pro bono among Mexican firms were access to justice at 50 percent, aid and development, COVID-19, economic development, microfinance and social finance, environment and climate change at 40 percent.
Firm Name |
Average Hours per Fee-Earner |
Fee Earners with 10+ Hours of Pro Bono |
Accenture |
- |
- |
Creel, Garcia-Cuellar, Aiza y Enriquez SC |
12.37 |
48.7% |
DLA Piper |
20.23 |
57.7% |
Dentons |
- |
- |
Fundación Enyx, A.C. |
4 |
20% |
GALICIA ABOGADOS, S.C. |
12.79 |
54.7% |
Hogan Lovells México |
87.3 |
88.8% |
Mayer Brown LLP |
2.5 |
14.3% |
Michelle |
10.44 |
17.8% |
Ritch, Mueller y Nicolau, S.C. |
24.66 |
60.9% |
SLLM Sánchez-Labrador y López Martínez, S.C. |
- |
- |
Sanchez Devanny Eseverri, S.C. |
4.3 |
12% |
VILA |
- |
- |
Von Wobeser y Sierra |
17.73 |
31.8% |
White & Case |
31.04 |
80.7% |
Peru
Pro bono in Peru is still emerging and growing. Since the Pro Bono Declaration for the Americas in 2008, the pro bono movement in the country has been expanding to a wider array of matters and acquiring a formal structure, leading to the creation of Alianza Pro Bono, a local network established by the largest law firms in the country, and now a leading voice championing pro bono in Peru.
Six Peruvian law firms participated in the 2022 Index, with 20 percent of fee earners providing an average of 6.9 hours and 12 percent providing ten or more hours of pro bono. Partners rendered an average of 10.3 hours of pro bono, with 25 percent of partners at responding firms reporting pro bono participation and 12 percent offering ten or more hours of pro bono. All firms (100 percent) indicated the presence of at least one element of pro bono infrastructure.
The most selected area of pro bono focus among responding firms was employment at 83 percent, access to justice followed at 50 percent, then aid and development, economic development, microfinance and social finance and human rights, all at 33 percent.
Firm Name |
Average Hours per Fee-Earner |
Fee Earners with 10+ Hours of Pro Bono |
Dentons |
3.98 |
16.7% |
Estudio Osterling |
- |
- |
GARCIA SAYAN ABOGADOS |
8.91 |
25% |
LEON E IPARRAGUIRRE ABOGADOS |
- |
- |
Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría |
5.41 |
18.4% |
Rodrigo, Elias y Medrano Abogados |
7.35 |
6% |