Sidley believes that all lawyers have a profound responsibility to use their training, skills and experience to provide legal services to the poor and to charitable, religious, community, governmental and educational organizations that otherwise would be unable to afford legal representation. Sidley lawyers also have a responsibility to the legal system to protect civil and human rights in this country and throughout the world. As Sidley has grown internationally, so has its commitment to global pro bono work, reflected, for example, in projects aimed at reducing the spread of malaria in African countries and improving agricultural technology in the West Bank.

Sidley’s pro bono policy strongly urges all lawyers to devote a significant amount of time to pro bono matters. Sidley subscribes to the ABA’s Pro Bono Challenge and has pledged to use its best efforts to contribute annually in pro bono work an amount of time equal to three percent of the firm’s total billable hours. In determining the compensation of lawyers and in evaluating associates’ performance, legal work undertaken for the firm’s pro bono clients is considered the same as comparable work for the firm’s paying clients—there are no limits on the number of pro bono hours. In all, in 2007, over 1,000 Sidley lawyers devoted more than 110,000 hours to pro bono matters.

The firm recognizes pro bono contributions by individual lawyers in a number of ways. Our Chicago office presents its annual Thomas H. Morsch Pro Bono Awards for outstanding pro bono work and publishes a list of lawyers who have performed over 60 hours of pro bono work in a given year. The Washington, D.C. office presents the Vincent Prada Pro Bono Awards, honoring those lawyers and legal assistants who devote more than 60 hours to pro bono clients.

Please click here to see a video honoring Sidley's involvement in and commitment to pro bono initiatives. This video was shown at the 2007 American Bar Association's Pro Bono Publico Awards reception.

Sidley’s commitment to pro bono service is reflected in the diversity and number of matters in which the firm has been involved. These matters cover most areas of the law and include:

Sidley’s firmwide Committee on Pro Bono and Public Interest Law coordinates the pro bono practice and makes recommendations to the firm’s governing committees regarding matters of firm pro bono policy. The Committee was instrumental in implementing three significant firmwide initiatives, the Capital Litigation Project, the Asylum and Immigrants’ Rights Project and the Veterans Benefits Project.

Pro bono work - including many civil and criminal cases in the United States Supreme Court - is an integral part of Sidley’s Appellate practice. Sidley’s commitment to pro bono at the highest levels is reflected in the firm’s work in Grutter v. Bollinger, the case challenging affirmative action at the University of Michigan. During the oral argument and in its favorable opinion, the Court cited Sidley’s brief on behalf of the retired military leaders who supported Michigan’s program. A New York Times commentator described the brief as perhaps “the most influential amicus brief in the history of the Supreme Court.”

An important component of Sidley’s pro bono work is its fellowship program, which allows associates to work at nonprofit organizations in the community either before they begin working at the firm or, in the case of the New York office, after they have joined the firm. While the programs in Sidley’s various offices differ in some respects, the programs all share certain characteristics: Sidley provides a fellowship stipend or pays the salary of the fellows to allow them to work for a nonprofit organization for about 10 weeks.

Sidley has received many special awards and much recognition for its pro bono work from numerous groups. Read about some of these recent honors.

Lawyers in all Sidley offices actively engage in a wide variety of community programs, giving back to the broader community on many levels. Some Sidley lawyers volunteer to help in activities in which they use their legal skills, while other lawyers devote time to the arts, children’s education and other community endeavors. These activities range from reading to elementary children, to helping law school moot court teams, to training students in important mediation skills, to providing meals to homeless women, and to giving holiday gifts to incarcerated youth. Click here to learn the details of Sidley’s community involvement.