Community
Having a positive impact on the community where we work is key to us as a firm. We have a long tradition of working with and supporting organisations that help to improve society.
We are proud to continue this tradition through our charitable activities, our volunteering work and the provision of pro bono legal services to those who need it most. Below are some of the highlights for the past year:
Charity Partners and Fundraising
Over the course of FY2022/23 we hosted 12 fundraising activities for our charities, with the involvement of over 280 of our people in these events.
We were pleased to see a significant increase of 55% in terms of funds raised during the year. This can be attributed to the return of in-person events and activities following their suspension during Covid.
Our charity partnerships are selected by our people and are usually for a three year period. During the financial year 2022/23 we came to the end of our partnerships with The Alzheimer Society of Ireland, Dublin Simon Community and Solas Project. We are very proud of the work that has been achieved with these three charities. We were particularly pleased to be shortlisted for the Chambers Ireland Sustainable Business Impact Awards 2023 for our support of The Alzheimer Society of Ireland’s education programme, Creating a Dementia Inclusive Generation – an e-learning platform for secondary school pupils that started as a pilot programme with 19 schools and was subsequently rolled out to over 50 schools.
To hear more from these charities about the impact our partnership has had with them please click on the videos below.
Alzheimer Society of Ireland
Dublin Simon Community
Solas Project
OUR NEW CHARITY PARTNERS
In September 2022 we began the selection process of our new charity partners for the next three years. We conducted a staff survey and the charities that received the most votes were:
“We are honoured that Children’s Health Foundation has been chosen by the team at Arthur Cox as a charity partner. Through the kindness and support of partners such as Arthur Cox, we can continue to pursue our goal of giving every sick child the best chance.”
Hugh Kane, Interim CEO, Children’s Health Foundation.
“We are delighted that Arthur Cox will be supporting us in our fundraising efforts over the next three years. These additional resources will help us achieve our goal to make our school programmes available free of charge to every single primary school child in Ireland and to enable us to support more and more young people as part of our early intervention/prevention strategy to equip future generations to be effective guardians of their own minds.”
Bernie Keogh, Managing Director, A Lust for Life.
“We are really pleased to have been chosen as one of Arthur Cox’s charity partners. Our work has never been more important, and we look forward to working with the firm and their staff on fundraising.”
Sarah Benson, CEO, Women’s Aid.
We kicked off our new partnerships in January 2023 and these will remain in place until the end of 2025. Our charity partnerships involve more than just financial support – we also help with marketing activities, event hosting, pro bono work, and our people participate in regular volunteering and fundraising activities during the year.
In March 2023 representatives from the charities came to our offices to talk about the work they do, how our people can get involved to make a real difference over the course of the coming three years, and the impact our partnerships will have for these charities.
FUNDRAISING HIGHLIGHT: A LUST FOR LIFE
A highlight activity with one of our new charity partners was an onsite staff fundraising rowing and cycling challenge in support of A Lust for Life’s The Rising campaign. We were delighted to raise over €7,000 to help fund mental health education programmes for young people, while our teams also had tremendous fun in the process!
Legacy Charity Partners
BOARDMATCH
We are pleased to continue our support for another year of Boardmatch, the only Irish charity that specialises in not-for-profit board recruitment. Founded by the late Mary Redmond, a former partner at Arthur Cox, Boardmatch connects leading organisations with individuals who are interested in volunteering their skills for board vacancies. Over the past year, many of our staff have completed the CPD approved Charity Trustee Governance Training course and through Boardmatch several of our staff have joined the boards of some of the country's leading charity and not-for-profit organisations.
IMNDA
We continued to be a long-term supporter of the Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association (IMNDA) – a legacy set up to honour our former colleague, Loretto Dempsey, who died in March 2017 after her brave battle with Motor Neurone Disease.
RETHINK IRELAND
Our partnership with Rethink Ireland also continues, which finds and backs the most innovative solutions to Ireland’s most pressing social issues. Through our support of Rethink Ireland we help identify charities and social enterprises working in communities across the country who need resources to nurture their ideas so that they can effect change in their local communities.
Volunteering
We are proud of our long history of volunteering and this is a key part of the culture and life at Arthur Cox.
Over the past 12 months we were particularly pleased to reintroduce some of our traditional in-person volunteering activities that were suspended during the pandemic. While hybrid volunteering activities still continue, the return of in-person activities like our PRIME work experience programme for young people from socially disadvantaged backgrounds, and events with Special Olympics, have resulted in an 18% increase in our volunteering hours for FY2022/23 when compared to last year.
SPECIAL OLYMPICS
Our commitment to providing volunteers to the Special Olympics aquatics event has been a much-loved volunteering tradition here at the firm for many years. In November 2022, we provided volunteers for an event at the National Aquatic Centre in Dublin after a two-year hiatus. Volunteering with Special Olympics offers our people the opportunity to promote inclusivity, develop empathy and understanding and make a positive impact on the lives of individuals with disabilities. To hear more about our relationship with our volunteering partner, Special Olympics, please click on our video (right).
PRIME PROGRAMME
PRIME is the Arthur Cox work experience programme aimed specifically at young people from socially disadvantaged communities. Students from DEIS schools participate in week-long in-person work experience, hosted by our own people. While we have operated this programme since 2011, we were unable to host it since before the pandemic. We very much welcomed its return in October 2022, with two more week-long programmes taking place during the academic year 2022/23.
Below are students from Blakestown Community School who participated in our October 2022 PRIME week.
Zambia Project
The Arthur Cox Zambia Project is a cornerstone of our volunteering programme. Despite the associated restrictions of Covid, the project continues to go from strength to strength thanks to the fundraising efforts of our people.
Established 15 years ago, the project aims to raise the standards of living in isolated regions of Zambia by supporting a wide range of initiatives, including food and water security projects and the development of health and education infrastructure.
FUNDRAISING INITIATIVES
While the tradition of our trainees travelling annually to assist and volunteer with our community project in Zambia has been paused for the last two years, we hope to resume travel again in 2024. Our trainees have continued to fundraise throughout the year to enable the continuation of our projects on the ground in Zambia. Through various fundraising initiatives involving the whole firm, over €49,000 was raised this year. Our staff fully get behind these fundraising and volunteering initiatives. In the past year they have swum in icy waters and taken part in a highly competitive firm-wide table quiz to raise much needed funds for the various aspects of the project.
To ensure sustainability and avoid dependence, the Arthur Cox Zambia Project's initiatives are designed to become self-funding. They are developed with the community within defined timescales with carefully managed handover to community leaders on exit, and ongoing monitoring of progress. Community decision-making, planning, ownership and handover are core pillars aimed at ensuring its success and sustainability.
In January 2023, representatives from the firm travelled to Zambia to check on the various projects and to meet community stakeholders to finalise the future three to five-year plan for the project.
FOOD SECURITY
The Loanja Rice Growers Company (LRG) was founded in 2019 as part of our Zambia project. The aim was to address food insecurity in the southwest region of Zambia. The LRG operates akin to a cooperative between participating farmers in the region under the guidance of agronomist and project facilitator, Mr Henry Ngimbu, and the local offices of the Ministry of Agriculture with the support of the Barotse Royal Establishment. Rice farming in the Mwandi district, especially around the Loanja plains, has expanded from 100kg of rice produced in 2016 to more than 500 metric tonnes in 2023. We were also pleased to receive the good news this year that the LRG won first prize at the 2023 Mwandi District Agricultural and Commercial Show.
In January 2023, the LRG officially opened its headquarters in Lipumpu village. This has a full processing, production, packaging and marketing plant, along with a demonstration plot to train farmers on crop diversification. A standalone shop was also opened by the LRG in late 2022 in the town of Mwandi, with a plan to also stock the output of its successful pilot diversification programmes, focusing on the high value crops of cassava, bananas, groundnuts and beans.
Under the supervision of the Mwandi Council Water Development Department, in 2022, the LRG rehabilitated five abandoned boreholes and installed two new boreholes within the farming region, to assist farmers in irrigation and provide water security to local communities. In 2023, the LRG will install a further 18 boreholes, including the installation of solar boreholes. Our continued focus for the project is to train the local community to make sustainable charcoal and biochar soil improver, with a view to cutting down on the over-reliance on firewood and help the fight against climate change.
EDUCATION
Since 2014, the project has partnered with the Chikuni Jesuit mission to expand and support a community schools programme, providing primary education to those who do not have adequate access to state facilities across 18 different communities in the region. The project has constructed six bespoke schools to date which now have 2,776 students. In the past year, we are pleased that the Ministry of Education has supplied government teachers for each of these schools. Plans are now in place over the coming year to expand our first school, built in Hakalinda, so it can accommodate additional student enrolment and provide housing for the full-time teachers.
In 2023, the Zambia Project also provided funds for the completion of the fit-out of a school at Sintemba. The project assisted with the purchase of six upgraded lithium batteries for installation at the six community schools. These batteries have a longer life span and help to provide solar powered electricity at the schools, including power for lights required for evening classes.
HEALTH
The Arthur Cox Zambia Project has also focused on healthcare. This began in 2008 with the renovation of a rural medical clinic in the village of Masese which provides services to a population of 5,700 people. We installed bore hole water supply and running water and also built a seven-bed maternity ward. The Masese Clinic was officially handed over to the Department of Health in 2014, although we continue to annually review and provide support to the clinic for repairs and provision of medicines, with specific funds allocated for repairs and medicines this year. In early 2023, the clinic underwent a full refurbishment with the benefit of local government funding, which is testament to the success of the project’s core pillar of community ownership. The oxygen manifold, which was constructed in 2022 at Mwandi hospital, supplies piped oxygen to hospital patients and also much-needed oxygen to health centres in the wider community. Plans are also under discussion to run the oxygen manifold using solar power.
Pro Bono
We work to improve access to justice in Ireland by engaging in agile and impactful pro bono projects that result in positive change. We are proud to partner with NGOs, charities and independent law centres that deliver frontline legal services to the most vulnerable people in the community.
Over the past financial year, our lawyers have delivered over 16,700 pro bono hours and we are pleased to report that we have attained a participation rate of 74% this year – an average of 30 hours per fee earner.
Highlights of our pro bono achievements for FY2023/23 include the development of new projects to support the UNHCR and the Irish Red Cross in response to the war in Ukraine. We have also expanded our pro bono immigration initiatives by partnering with the Irish Refugee Council, the Immigrant Council of Ireland and Crosscare, to help some of the most vulnerable people in society gain access to legal advice. We were also awarded the Best Community Programme award at the Chambers Ireland Sustainable Business Impact Awards in September 2022 for our ongoing pro bono support of FLAC’s information line. In October 2022 we were proud to support the PILNet Global Forum which took place in Dublin – an international conference that showcased pro bono work in Ireland and brought together leading pro bono experts from around the world.
More information on these developments and our pro bono projects is detailed below.
SUPPORTING CHARITIES AND COMMUNITY GROUPS
Through the Arthur Cox Charity Law Group, we undertake pro bono work for small charities and community groups by advising on charity law and governance matters. Some examples of this legal assistance include our support to:
The Solas Project: The Solas Project works to support young people and children to understand their self-worth and take full advantage of their potential. We assisted with licence agreements for youth programme spaces, responding to lease enquiries, and ensuring governance documents comply with legislation. Through our support to The Solas Project, we provide practical and strategic advice.
The Endometriosis Association of Ireland (EAI): The Endometriosis Association of Ireland provides information and support for women with endometriosis. Arthur Cox and the Endometriosis Association of Ireland developed an Employment Law Guide which is a practical source of information and guidance for employers to help navigate the complexity of disability law, and to inform employees suffering from endometriosis.
“The guide is clearly written and addresses the key employment issues affecting those living with endometriosis, in addition to serving employers who may not understand how the condition can impact performance in the workplace.”
Róisín Carroll, Board Member, The Endometriosis Association of Ireland
COMMITMENT TO STRENGTHEN PRO BONO IN IRELAND
PILnet Global Forum
We were very pleased to sponsor the 2022 PILnet Global Forum and host a pre-conference event in our Dublin office. This international conference brought together leading pro bono experts from around the world to forge alliances and develop strategies for using the law to protect civil society and the communities they serve. This was the first major in-person PILnet event since the pandemic, celebrating two milestones: the 25th anniversary of PILnet’s founding and the 15th year of the forum. Topics included access to justice for refugees, the role of technology in pro bono, the future of ESG, pro bono for children’s rights, and climate action.
Pro Bono Pledge Ireland
We are a founding signatory of Pro Bono Pledge Ireland, launched by the Minister for Justice in 2020. This collaboration affirms our commitment to pro bono and to working together to promote access to justice. In 2022, Pro Bono Pledge Ireland launched its inaugural Impact Report. This report offers insight into the variety of pro bono work undertaken by Irish lawyers. It summarises the pro bono data reported by the Pledge signatories and highlights how Irish lawyers have collaborated with each other, and NGOs, in times of crises to provide legal assistance to those most in need at vulnerable times in their lives.
PILnet Global Forum (L-R)
Alannah McKeaveney, Arthur Cox Belfast, Litigation Associate Carolann, Arthur Cox, Pro Bono Of Counsel Emma Cassidy, PILS Project, Senior Engagement Lead
Pro Bono Pledge Ireland (L-R)
Carolann Minnock, Arthur Cox, Pro Bono Of Counsel Niamh Counihan, Matheson, Pro Bono Partner Eithne Lynch, A&L Goodbody, Head of Pro Bono Julia Mayerhofer, PILnet, Co-Executive Director Giulia Patane, PILnet, Program Manager
COLLABORATING WITH CLIENTS ON PRO BONO
Most lawyers, both in private practice and in-house, have a genuine desire to be involved with pro bono work. However, not all lawyers have access to meaningful pro bono opportunities. This is particularly the case for in-house lawyers. We are pleased to have an opportunity to add value and strengthen corporate client relationships by working together on pro bono projects.
The Law Society of Ireland issued a practice direction on in-house solicitors and pro bono work available here. This notes details how in-house counsel can collaborate with private practice law firms to engage in pro bono.
Reporting on Progress
The aim of our pro bono practice is to improve access to justice by engaging in agile and impactful pro bono projects that result in positive change, this goal is directly aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 16, which relates to promoting peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, including access to justice for all.
PROGRESS
Over the past year, we are pleased to report that our people have exceeded 16,700 pro bono hours and attained a participation rate of 74% for the first time. This represents 30 pro bono hours per fee earner. We have made steady progress in delivering on each of our objectives. Looking forward, we are mindful that our goal is to strengthen the quality and impact of the pro bono work we undertake.
Participation rate of 74% Our target is 75%