17th Performance Report of the National Pro Bono Target

Published on 25 September 2024 The Report sets out the progress of the Australian legal profession in delivering pro bono services across the country, as measured against a range of indicators including pro bono hours undertaken and the number of lawyers covered by the Target on an annual basis.

In FY2024 signatories to the Centre’s Target completed a record total 781,596 hours of pro bono and reported undertaking an average of 39.6 hours of pro bono legal services per lawyer, exceeding the Target of 35 hours.  

Target signatories include law firms, in-house corporate and government legal teams, barristers’ chambers and individual solicitors and barristers volunteering in a personal capacity. Overall, the cohort of Target signatories has continued to expand year on year, reaching 330 signatories as at 30 June 2024, up from 286 as at 30 June 2023.  

The number of lawyers reflected by the Target signatory cohort has also increased from 18,731 in FY2023 to a record 19,724 lawyers in FY2024. This year, the number of lawyers working in large firms (with 50 or more lawyers) covered by the Target grew by 537 to a total of 18,263 lawyers, with this group delivering an average of 39.7 pro bono hours per lawyer in FY2024, an increase from 37 in FY2023. There has been a significant increase in large law firms meeting the Target this year – 51.7% of large firms met or exceeded the Target in FY2024 compared to 47% in FY2023.   

Solicitors and barristers volunteering in a personal capacity reported an outstanding average of 103.5 pro bono hours in FY2024, continuing to build on the 102 hours reported by this cohort in FY2023. Small law firms (with fewer than 50 lawyers) reported a decrease in average pro bono hours per lawyer at 45.8, down from 50.2 hours in FY2023.  
 
Overall, 51.4% of Target signatories met their respective Targets in FY2024, slightly down from 52.8% in FY2023. This includes the newer category of in-house legal team signatories, introduced 4 years ago, which aspire to a Target of 20 hours per lawyer per year.  
 
Target signatories were asked how many individuals performed dedicated pro bono roles and the seniority level of those roles. A total of 168 dedicated pro bono roles were reported by signatories in FY2024, with the highest number of dedicated roles (55) reported at the Lawyer/Associate followed by Senior Associates/Special Counsel level. Notably, Target signatories reported 27 dedicated pro bono roles at the Partner/ Principal level.  

The profession’s commitment to pro bono is stronger in some Australian states and territories than others. Victorian lawyers are once again providing the highest proportion of pro bono hours compared to the number of practising solicitors in that jurisdiction. While it is encouraging to see modest increases in pro bono hours relative to the number of lawyers in Queensland and Western Australia, there is still significant potential for growth in those jurisdictions, as well as in Tasmania and South Australia.