The
height
of
summer
is
nearly
upon
us,
but
law
students
have
their
future
careers
on
their
minds.
With
so
many
things
to
take
into
account
when
considering
their
livelihoods,
how
can
law
students
create
meaningful
distinction
between
firms?
Perhaps
they
can
take
a
look
at
the
firms’
pro
bono
numbers
—
which
at
some
firms,
has
become
a
battle
over
money
versus
morals.
Pro
bono
work
has
taken
on
a
different
hue
now
that
Trump
is
in
the
White
House,
with
some
firms
afraid
to
take
on
work
that
may
be
frowned
upon,
and
others
pledging
hundreds
of
millons
of
dollars’
worth
of
pro
bono
payola
to
conservative
causes.
But
over
the
course
of
the
last
year,
before
pro
bono
work
became
a
controversial
topic,
members
of
the
legal
profession
sprang
into
action
to
deal
with
crisis
after
crisis
after
crisis,
offering
their
services
without
cost
to
those
in
need.
From
immigration
and
asylum
work
to
racial
justice
initiatives
to
protecting
reproductive
rights
in
America’s
post-Dobbs legal
landscape,
lawyers
across
the
country
were
inspired
to
do
their
very
best
to
help
those
who
needed
their
assistance
the
very
most.
But
which
law
firms
were
able
to
contribute
the
most
to
society?
The
American
Lawyer
has
compiled
a
ranking
of
Am
Law
200
firms
based
on
their
pro
bono
work
in
2024.
Half
of
their
scores
come
from
the
average
number
of
pro
bono
hours
per
lawyer,
while
the
other
half
represents
the
percentage
of
lawyers
who
performed
more
than
20
hours
of
pro
bono
work.
Here
are
the top
10
firms
in
terms
of
pro
bono
work performed
in
2024:
-
Jenner
&
Block -
Covington
&
Burling - WilmerHale
-
Patterson
Belknap -
Munger
Tolles -
O’Melveny
&
Myers -
Arnold
&
Porter - Dechert
-
Gibson
Dunn -
Hogan
Lovells
It
should
be
noted
that
at
each
firm
listed,
the
average
attorney
performed
more
than
100
hours
of
pro
bono
work
last
year,
and
the
Am
Law
200
as
a
whole
contributed
about
5.12
million
hours
of
pro
bono
work.
These
numbers
are
down
slightly
from
2021,
2022,
and
2023,
and
lag
behind
the
hellish
year
that
was
2020
(when
the
Am
Law
200
contributed
5.45
million
hours
of
pro
bono
work),
but
leaders
in
the
pro
bono
space
know
that
meaningful
pro
bono
work
is
still
widely
available
for
attorneys.
Congratulations
to
the
Biglaw
firms
where
attorneys
chose
compassion
during
yet
another
busy
year.
Your
efforts
will
not
be
forgotten.
The
2025
Pro
Bono
Scorecard:
National
Report
[American
Lawyer]
Staci
Zaretsky is
a
senior
editor
at
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
She’d
love
to
hear
from
you,
so
please
feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
comments,
or
critiques.
You
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on LinkedIn.