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Partner short-listed for Young Lawyer Pro Bono Award 2007

Denise Sexton, a partner in the firm’s Real Estate Practice, was a finalist for the Young Lawyer Pro Bono Award 2007 for the work she has done with the Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre. The awards are run by the Law Society’s Young Solicitors Group.  

The Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre is the first-ever university-run law centre in London, and was launched in October last year. Denise has played an integral role in the legal centre’s development, working closely with the Queen Mary’s team to set up the project since the very start.

The centre was opened to promote ‘access to justice’ within the local community, as well as encourage students to practice and develop their legal skills.

In addition to helping with the initial launch, Denise has arranged a timetable of Field Fisher Waterhouse involvement, successfully encouraging both solicitors and partners to get involved and ensuring regular attendance. Denise also volunteers at the Advice Centre and provides ongoing feedback to Queen Mary students. 

The other aspect of the law centre is to encourage young law students to develop their ethics as well as their legal skills, and to gain invaluable ‘on the job experience’. Denise has assisted in the creation of an extensive skills training programme for the students and has helped to organise career workshops for all the law students.

Denise sits on the firm’s Corporate Social Responsibility committee and is responsible for heading up the ‘Pro Bono & Community Involvement’ arm of the firm’s CSR program.  She has produced guidance and procedures on pro bono for the firm as well as working to ensure that pro bono work forms part of the formal appraisal process and assistants’ bonuses. She also worked alongside partner and CSR Chairman, David Gollancz on the creation of the firm’s new CSR program which was launched in 2006.

Julie Pinborough, the Legal Advice Centre Manager, said: “It is important to the profession and the development of pro bono that young lawyers such as Denise be acknowledged, encouraged and rewarded for their enthusiasm, commitment and dedication to pro bono.  Establishing a new project such as a legal advice centre within a university setting is a difficult path with many challenging factors for a law firm but Denise’s commitment to pro bono and access to justice has played a fundamental role in the creation of the Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre.”