Our Pro Bono Work

Outside the office, Hengeler Mueller personnel dedicate their time to social causes in various ways. As one of Germany’s premier large commercial law firms, Hengeler Mueller is also aware of its social responsibility at a firm-wide level. For this reason, the firm takes on pro bono clients in suitable cases, providing legal advice free of charge and thereby either supporting a good cause or giving clients, who would otherwise not be able to afford it, access to qualified legal advice. In particular, Hengeler Mueller provides pro bono legal advice to charitable institutions active in fields such as education and science, health care, the environment, arts and culture, human rights and the rule of law, as well as in the fight against hunger and poverty.

One example of our pro bono casework in recent years is advising the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), a non-profit organisation headquartered in England, which advocates worldwide for protection of the environment, in particular the world's oceans, and for the defence of human rights. To achieve its goals, the EFJ conducts studies and campaigns to raise public awareness through global networks comprised of environmentalists, human rights activists and local communities. Hengeler Mueller has advised the EJF on its activities in Germany. Other examples include our services for the African Parks Network, an environmental and animal welfare organisation; the non-profit Afro-German lawyers association Afro‑Deutsche Jurist:innen e.V.; and the charitable association Philip Julius e.V., which supports the families of children with multiple severe disabilities. Some of our pro bono engagements have a more local connection, such as our advice to Start Right e.V., an association in which law students provide legal assistance for social projects, such as the Munich Teddybärkrankenhaus, where medical students of the Munich universities LMU and TUM volunteer their time to help children overcome their fear of visiting the doctor by acquainting them with a hospital setting through fun and playful 'teddy bear clinics'. Some of our pro bono work also relates to major international challenges, such as advising the U.S. non-profit organisation International Refugee Assistance Project, Inc. (IRAP), which is committed to the development and enforcement of a system of legal claims and human rights for refugees and displaced persons around the world.

As a rule, we provide advice in those areas of law in which Hengeler Mueller has particular expertise. Many of the firm's pro bono engagements have come about through personal contacts and the civic engagement of our lawyers and business services staff. In addition to the actual work performed for various engagements, Hengeler Mueller is also involved in professional organisations that promote pro bono legal advice in special ways, such as Pro Bono e.V., an association in which many of the larger German law firms have joined forces. The firm's pro bono work is coordinated by Annika Clauss and Georg Seyfarth, who are the first points of contact for any client enquiries.