Double shortlisting success for Cardiff Pro Bono work

Pro bono work carried out by students and staff at the School of Law and Politics has been honoured by a charity committed to enabling access to justice.

The LawWorks and Attorney General Student Pro Bono Awards took place at the House of Commons on 27 April 2023 and work carried out by Law and Criminology student, Betsy Board and the Pro Bono project, Ukraine Project Cymru was shortlisted in the ‘Best Contribution by an Individual Student’ and ‘Best New Pro Bono Activity’ categories respectively.

Second year student Betsy’s work with the national charity, Support Through the Court (STC) gained her the award nomination. Due to funding cuts, a partnership was established between the school and STC which sees provision of a busy in-court service for vulnerable litigants in person, supported by students. Betsy is a team leader and is the first point of contact for the office manager. She has attended more than 10 hearings, providing the most vulnerable with practical emotional support. She travelled to Newport every day for a 4-day divorce settlement hearing, helping someone confused and anxious about the court system and goes above and beyond to assist and help a variety of litigants with a range of needs.

Ukraine Project Cymru, launched in October 2022, is the newest Pro Bono scheme at the School of Law and Politics and is a partnership between Cardiff University, Welsh Government and local charity Asylum Justice. The project offers a free immigration advice scheme to individuals and families based in Wales who have fled their homes due to the war in Ukraine. 13 dedicated and committed students work on the project with all legal advice given by project lead, Jennifer Morgan. The project is pan-Wales and paperless. All appointments take place via MS Teams and documents are drafted electronically and sent to clients by email.

Head of Pro Bono and Clinical Legal Education, Professor Julie Price said, “I am thrilled to see Betsy and Ukraine Project Cymru recognised at the LawWorks Pro Bono awards this year. There is so much good work being carried out in our Pro Bono unit so seeing even a fraction of it recognised by such an important charity is fantastic.”