Amid a shift in EU policy to center pro bono legal assistance as a key pillar of support to Europe’s civil society, PILnet calls on the legal community to seize the moment.
For years, pro bono legal work in Europe has been valued in principle but patchy in practice, often remaining invisible to policymakers. We at PILnet have always seen pro bono in Europe as a strategic tool to strengthen civil society, advance the public interest, and support democracy and the rule of law. Recent developments signal the EU policy mainstream now recognizes the value of pro bono as well, underscoring a crucial moment to step up and be a part of shaping the change.
For the first time, the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union, has formally recognized pro bono legal support as a strategic pillar of a healthy civic ecosystem, and it has named PILnet as a leading example of the networks making it work.
On November 12, 2025, the European Commission published the EU Strategy for Civil Society, the first of its kind. The document, a product of years of advocacy by civil society organizations across the continent, is complementary to the European Democracy Shield (also issued on the same day) and highlights the core role of civil society for democracy. It covers new frameworks for civic engagement, strengthened protections against threats to civil society organizations (CSOs) and human rights defenders, and a major proposed boost in dedicated EU funding for civil society. Together, these initiatives represent the most ambitious EU-level commitment to democratic resilience in a generation.
The context: a civic space under pressure
CSOs across Europe are under genuine and growing strain. Civic space is shrinking in a number of EU member states, and CSOs and human rights defenders face a wide range of threats: smear campaigns, strategic lawsuits designed to silence them (SLAPPs), administrative harassment, and, in some jurisdictions, outright hostility from governments that have come to see independent civil society as an adversary, rather than an asset.
At the same time, the regulatory environment in which CSOs operate has grown substantially more complex. Navigating employment law compliance, tax requirements, data protection, contracting, and corporate governance is quite burdensome even for well-resourced corporations, and can be unmanageable for the grassroots and community-led civic associations around the EU. The legal and administrative demands on non-profit organizations have expanded enormously in recent decades. For organizations with modest budgets and community-focused staff, navigating this complex regulatory landscape without professional support is becoming both difficult and dangerous. Positive initiatives have also come under threat: the proposed withdrawal of the European Cross-Border Associations (ECBAs) Directive, a step which would make it harder for NGOs and nonprofit networks to collaborate transnationally, prompted over 260 organizations, including PILnet, to sign an open letter calling on the Commission to reverse the decision
In this challenging context, the Commission’s strategy is direct on this point: it acknowledges, in line with PILnet’s vision, that navigating today’s legal, regulatory, and administrative environment demands not just financial resources, but specialist knowledge, and that pro bono lawyers are uniquely placed to provide it.
The strategy is explicit about what support pro bono lawyers can deliver: regulatory compliance, strategic litigation, capacity building, and legal representation for CSOs facing SLAPPs. The Commission’s commitment to actively connect communities of pro bono lawyers with CSOs in need represents a meaningful shift. This is also in line with last year’s IBA Pro Bono Declaration’s recommendations.
PILnet: the infrastructure behind the vision
Recognizing pro bono as a strategic resource acknowledges decades of impact and effort by the pro bono community to build the infrastructure that sustains and supports it. We appreciate PILnet being named in the strategy as a leading example of the kind of pro bono network that provides exceptional impact and a cross-sectoral, all-of-society global approach. PILnet has been connecting civil society organizations with law firms and in-house legal teams worldwide for over a quarter of a century, assessing legal needs, and facilitating matches across jurisdictions and languages. In 2024 alone, PILnet brokered pro bono assistance for over 400 requests (an almost 40% increase from the previous year), with a monetary value of more than 7.5 million EUR. We offer a unique ability to amplify impact, converting every euro received into four times its value in expert legal support through the pro bono networks we build.
PILnet also spearheaded the European Pro Bono Alliance (EPBA), a network of more than 20 pro bono matchmaking clearinghouses and pro bono initiatives spanning the continent, many of which PILnet helped found. Fifteen years on from its launch, EPBA members continue to support each other, strategize, and coordinate their pro bono work across Europe, learning from each other, nurturing pro bono culture, and fostering a stronger civil society in Europe.
The work is specific and operational, not aspirational. Whether providing cross-jurisdictional legal analysis for a minority rights organization in Central Europe, drafting an initial GDPR policy for a small refugee-led nonprofit, or ensuring labor law compliance for a human rights NGO in Germany, pro bono lawyers offer vital support. Across the continent, pro bono lawyers are empowering CSOs to navigate increasingly restrictive civic spaces, including the complex legal process of relocating to find refuge within the EU.
Every week, PILnet and its EPBA partners bridge the gap between legal need and supply, matching pro bono volunteers with CSOs to resolve these and other complex legal questions — across borders, in multiple languages, and at no cost. These are functioning programs, with demonstrated demand, waiting to be scaled.
The moment is now
For the European legal profession, the Commission’s strategy is both a validation and a challenge: a recognition that pro bono is strategically important at the EU level, and an expectation that the profession will respond accordingly. The strategy signals that pro bono networks have institutional backing and are recognized as part of an all-of-society approach to strengthening democratic resilience. We take it as an invitation for deeper collaboration with EU institutions and for the expansion and renewal of pro bono networks across Europe.
But a strategy is only as strong as its implementation. Turning these commitments into real outcomes will require coordinated action across institutions, civil society, and the legal profession itself.
To realise the strategy’s ambitions, several concrete steps are needed:
For the European Commission:
- Sustain structured engagement with civil society, including regular dialogue and practical partnerships with CSOs and pro bono networks.
- Establish consultation platforms and cross-sector convenings that bring together civil society, the legal profession, donors, and EU institutions to translate policy ambition into operational collaboration, like the PILnet European Convening.
- Support EU-level efforts to address structural barriers to pro bono, working with member states, bar associations, civil society, and the private sector to remove legal, regulatory, or cultural restrictions that still limit lawyers’ ability to provide free legal services.
- Invest in existing pro bono infrastructure, strengthening organizations and networks that already connect legal expertise with civil society rather than attempting to build new mechanisms from scratch. Networks such as PILnet and the EPBA bring brokerage expertise, trusted relationships, and deep knowledge of where legal support can make the greatest difference.
- Provide sustained public funding for organizations capable of turning strategic commitments into practical legal support for civil society.
For the European legal profession, including law firm managing partners, pro bono leads, bar associations, in-house legal teams, and the wider legal community:
- Commit meaningful pro bono hours and resources, ensuring that support for civil society is backed by dedicated time, supervision, and institutional commitment.
- Strengthen partnerships with pro bono clearinghouses and networks that can effectively match legal expertise with the needs of CSOs across Europe.
- Mobilize leadership across the profession—including managing partners, pro bono leads, bar associations, and in-house legal teams—to treat this moment as a call to action rather than a symbolic endorsement.European civil society needs legal support. The Commission has recognized it, formally and explicitly, for the first time. The architecture to deliver that support, including the EU CSO Strategy, the Democracy Shield, PILnet’s clearinghouses, and the EPBA’s networks, is taking shape. The foundations are now set. What must follow are concrete commitments: from the Commission, to fund the organizations that will turn ambitions into real action; from the legal profession, to deliver the legal firepower, expertise, and unwavering commitment this critical moment demands. Democratic resilience isn’t forged by institutions alone: it’s built through total societal mobilization, and the legal profession holds a unique, irreplaceable role.
Step up now. The moment is here.
—Giulia Patane, Program Director: Europe, PILnet