LAWFUEL – Legal News Worldwide – As part of the firm’s 10 year anniversary of its pro bono unit and to mark Pro Bono Week from 12-17 November, Lovells is hosting an exhibition in Second Life to showcase some of its pro bono work.
The exhibition showcases current and former pro bono clients including Whitechapel Mission, Thames 21, Poetry in Wood, Community Links, National Centre for Domestic Violence, Greenworks, Muslim Youth.Net, The Prince’s Trust, and Action for Blind People.
Lovells is the first large international law firm to use Second Life, an internet based 3D virtual world which was launched in 2003 and came to wider attention in late 2006 and early 2007. Second Life users, called “residents”, are able to interact with each other through 3D representations of themselves, creating an advanced level of social networking. Residents can explore, meet other residents, socialise, participate in individual and group activities, create and trade items and services from one another.
Lovells was the first City law firm to appoint a full time pro bono manager, with the appointment of Yasmin Waljee in 1997. Over the last decade the firm has developed an international pro bono initiative which offers the firm’s experience and commercial legal expertise to charities, individuals and not-for-profit social enterprises which are unable to afford legal advice or obtain legal aid.
Crispin Rapinet, Pro Bono Partner, said:
“Ten years after becoming the first City law firm to appoint a full-time Pro Bono Officer, it is clear to see that a commitment to pro bono is firmly entrenched in the Lovells culture. We now undertake over 16,000 hours of pro bono work annually. More than 450 lawyers in our offices worldwide are involved in providing pro bono legal advice to our clients. We are looking forward to continuing this success over the next 10 years.”
Tony Miller, Director of the Whitechapel mission, a centre caring for the homeless of East London, said:
“Lovells have worked closely with us on a number of projects, including providing pro bono legal advice, sending volunteers to the Mission to cook breakfast for 150 people who are homeless, and donating clothes and toiletries. The support they give really does make a difference.”
Chris Hinze, head of corporate communications, said:
“A temporary exhibition in Second Life provides an innovative way of supporting Pro Bono Week alongside more traditional forms of communication. It helps us demonstrate to a wide range of individuals and organisations some of the different pro bono projects that we have been carrying out over the past ten years. At the same time it enables us to look at what emerging means of communication have to offer.”
Click here to see the Lovells pro bono Second Life exhibition
Notes for editor
About Lovells
With over 3,000 people operating from 26 offices in Asia, Europe and the United States, Lovells is one of the world’s leading international law firms. We advise many of the world’s largest corporations, financial institutions and governmental organisations. We regularly act on complex, multi jurisdictional transactions as well as some of the most high profile commercial disputes.Lovells (the “firm”) is an international legal practice comprising Lovells LLP and its affiliated businesses. Lovells LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales with registered number OC323639. Registered office and principal place of business: Atlantic House, Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2FG.
The word “partner” is used to refer to a member of Lovells LLP, or an employee or consultant with equivalent standing and qualifications, and to a partner, member, employee or consultant in any of its affiliated businesses who has equivalent standing.
About Second Life
Second Life is a 3D online world with a rapidly growing population from 100 countries around the globe, in which the Residents themselves create and build the world, which includes homes, vehicles, nightclubs, stores, landscapes and clothing. The Second Life Grid is a sophisticated development platform created by Linden Lab, a company founded in 1999 by Philip Rosedale, to create a revolutionary new form of shared 3D experience. The former CTO of RealNetworks, Rosedale pioneered the development of many of today’s streaming media technologies, including RealVideo. In April 2003, noted software pioneer Mitch Kapor, founder of Lotus Development Corporation, was named Chairman. Based in San Francisco, Linden Lab employs a senior team bringing together deep expertise in physics, 3D graphics and networking. Second Life® and Linden Lab® are registered trademarks of Linden Research, Inc.
