Hudderfield Solicitor Sarah Young of Ridley & Hall goes to the Lords!

SARAH GOES TO THE LORDS!

Sarah Young, Vice President of the Huddersfield Incorporated Law Society, attended a very special event last week.

She was nominated to attend a special reception at the House of Lords on Tuesday 3rd November by the Law Society of England and Wales for her work in setting up a duty solicitor scheme at Huddersfield County Court to provide family law and civil litigation advice to litigants in person.

She was one of only 50 lawyers and other professionals invited by Baroness Scotland the Attorney General to launch a nationwide campaign to celebrate the range and impact of free services (pro bono) at the start of the eighth National Pro Bono Week (9th to 13th November).

Sarah Young, who is also Managing Partner of Ridley & Hall solicitors, said “Solicitors, barristers, legal executives, law students and other professionals regularly give free advice to meet unmet need, in a variety of settings, including law centres and clinics across England and Wales.”

“I am proud of the hard work that solicitors in Huddersfield have put in to ensure local people get good advice at a time when they are under all sorts of pressure”
Nationally it is estimated that work that the value of pro-bono work has increased significantly since 2007 from £338m to £399m, - by 17.9%. Solicitors from Huddersfield are contributing to this figure.

She went on “It must be remembered that pro bono is not a replacement for a legal aid system adequately funded by Government."

Pro Bono Week will be launched with the Joint National Pro Bono Conference, which aims to harness the enthusiasm and momentum of working together pro bono. The conference held in Manchester and London provides a forum for everyone and anyone who is interested in pro bono to come together, share ideas, forge new partnerships, reinforce existing ones, and find a way forward on difficult pro bono issues.

The conference will be attended by the leaders of the 3 legal professions, and will include key note speeches from Lord Bach and Lord Goldsmith, QC.
There are more than 100 activities taking place nationwide throughout the week, which demonstrate the range of pro bono services regularly on offer with law firms, law students, community centres and other professionals offering free advice sessions.

Robert Heslett, Law Society President, said: "This week celebrates the exceptional amount of pro bono work undertaken by each strand of the legal profession, who regularly use their professional skills to support individuals and communities with otherwise unmet legal needs. The common feature in National Pro Bono Week is the willingness of lawyers put something back into the community.

"The commitment of lawyers to provide access to justice for the most vulnerable members of our society, who are ineligible for legal aid, remains one of the most influential factors in the decisions of many law firms to establish and or develop pro bono programmes.”
 

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