Kingsley Napley is committed to being a responsible member of the legal profession. It also tries to make a material contribution to the wider community.
Providing pro bono help to people who need legal assistance but cannot afford it forms an important component of our community focused activities.
Respect for the rule of law and the proper administration of justice, the assertion and defence of human rights including the right of access to justice, and challenging miscarriages of justice are principles which have always been at the heart of the Firm’s values, and at the centre of our business operations.
We have a long history of standing up for such principles and rights and of facilitating access to justice, at home and abroad, for clients and others, including on a pro bono basis.
Our projects currently include:
Amicus
Since 2015 we have worked with Amicus for over 5110 pro bono hours on death penalty cases and research projects. We are currently helping the Florida Centre for Capital Representation (FCCR) to track live murder cases in the state. We currently have over 48 volunteers covering around 293 cases. The FCCR team rely on our monthly updates which help them to analyse for patterns such as race and the defendants’ age to see how this can affect charges, trials and sentencing.
Assisting Afghan women in need
Our Immigration team, along with Jenner & Block, have been acting for a female Afghan judge after the Home Office refused her and her son entry into the UK. We are currently building the appeal and the Home Office are reviewing the case.
Supporting the Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre
The centre is located in the Borough of Tower Hamlets, one of the most diverse and deprived boroughs in London. Since 2016, KNers have been volunteering at the centre, initially to help people with criminal matters they faced, and most recently with their family and contentious probate and trust issues. In the last academic year 2021/22 our lawyers provided 41 supervised appointments – 22 Criminal, 8 Family and 11 Wills and Probate, (about 10% of all appointments at the clinic). This works out at approximately 370 hours of pro bono support.