HWL, Maddocks among law firms named and shamed for pro bono failures

afr.com:

More than half of the firms on the Commonwealth’s legal services panel have failed to meet pro bono targets, putting at risk their ability to win lucrative government work.

Laggard firms were named and shamed for the first time in the 2021-22 legal services expenditure report, and were warned that government agencies would take failure to meet the target into account “when determining which [firms] to engage”.

The report is the first time firms have been named and shamed for failing to do enough pro bono work, under a directive from Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus.

Pro bono work is done by legal practitioners on a low or no-fee basis, often for not-for-profit organisations or individuals who cannot afford legal representation. There is no formal requirement to complete pro bono work. The voluntary 35-hour target was introduced by the Attorney-General’s Department in 2017.

The report, by the Attorney-General’s Department, also revealed a sharp rise in legal spending, with fees paid to firms and counsel up 20.9 per cent, and overall legal expenditure rising 12 per cent to $1.19 billion, contributing to a booming legal market in the latter stages of the pandemic.

Four of the 10 largest government legal fee earners failed to meet the pro bono target of 35 hours per lawyer per annum. HWL Ebsworth, Maddocks, lawyerbank and the Australian Government Solicitor (AGS) all fell short.

HWL Ebsworth, which is already on the nose in Canberra after 65 government agencies were victims of a cyberattack on the firm, was 36th of 62 firms with 23.6 pro bono hours per lawyer.

Chief strategy officer Russell Mailler told The Australian Financial Review HWL had raised its pro bono hours since the reporting period, but “our continued rapid