In our annual report on big-firm pro bono activity ["Under Construction," July/August], my colleague Amy Kolz reported that the efforts of the Second Hundred remain mired, on average, at roughly half the level of The Am Law 100. A variety of explanations were offered: size, geography, low expectations, and even infrastructure. All make some sense, but they politely omit the single most important factor: the will to uphold one of the profession’s noblest ideals.
Sad, alas, but true. It doesn’t have to be that way. Below is the list of the top 10 pro bonoperforming Second Hundred firms. They work in a wide range of cities, specialize in a variety of practices, and possess enviable balance sheets. Some employ pro bono specialists, others put partners in charge of their programs. A commitment to the work is what they have in common, one expressed by firm leadership, reinforced by partner action, and inculcated in associates almost from the moment they start. Each firm is a business, of course, and they all tick off pro bono’s economic dividends: training their associates; bonding with their clients on projects; building a culture that rests on more than a foundation of K-1 forms. In an age when it has become popular to speak of law firm partnerships as human centrifuges, that last point is hardly trivial.
