2020 Agenda

October 19, 2020

See details for meeting times

Global Meeting of Law Firm Pro Bono Professionals

Open to law firm professionals only

For law firm pro bono professionals, this meeting is presented in partnership with the Association of Pro Bono Counsel (APBCo). This session will raise topics that will be discussed at the PILnet Forum while also focusing on insights specific to the pro bono role within law firms. The session will begin with discussion on how law firm pro bono professionals use data – and how we could use it better. Then the session will reflect on remote working and resilience: what our community has learned from the sudden, global, remote working experience and how we can retain the positives and avoid the negatives. Finally, the session will consider race equity: race equity through the eyes of our pro bono profession, race equity work to educate ourselves as pro bono professionals, and the process of engaging our firms in race equity work.

10am CEST/4pm HKT – Asia Pacific & Europe

12pm EDT/6pm CEST – Americas & Europe

DETAILS
Session Rooms

See details for meeting times

Global Pro Bono Clearinghouse Lab

Open to all

This year’s Clearinghouse Pro Bono Lab offers an excellent opportunity to learn about pro bono efforts across the globe.  The day’s program will start in the morning (CEST) with a live exchange for European, African, and Asian pro bono clearinghouse  initiatives. The opening session will be followed by thematic discussions on African, Eurasian, European, and Asian pro bono developments. The day’s program, following the rising sun in the Americas, will close with an exchange session for the clearinghouses of Europe and the Americas.

  • 2am EDT/ 8am CEST/ 2pm HKT –  Clearinghouse Coffee Lounge opens – All day open session to meet and networks with your peers
  • 3a EDT/9am CEST/3pm HKT – Kickoff & Exchange of Ideas – A welcome to all participants to kickoff a day of Global Clearinghouse Labs
  • 4am EDT/10am CEST/4pm HKT – State of the Art: Pro Bono in sub-Saharan Africa
  • 6am EDT/12pm CEST/6pm HKT – State of the Art: Pro Bono in Asia
  • 7am EDT/1pm CEST/7pm HKT – State of the Art: Pro Bono in Europe
  • 8am EDT/2pm CEST/8pm HKT – Global Gathering in Clearinghouse Coffee Lounge
  • 9am EDT/ 3pm CEST/9pm HKT – State of the Art: Pro Bono in Eurasia – Bar Associations
  • 10am EDT/4pm CEST – Americas & Europe – Exchange of Ideas – A joint session of the European Pro Bono Alliance and Red Pro Bono de las Americas (RPBA)
  • 2p EDT/ 8p CEST/ 2a HKT – Clearinghouse Coffee Lounge closes
DETAILS
Session Rooms

See details for meeting times

Global Meeting of Corporate In-House Pro Bono Professionals

Open to corporate in-house counsel and related professionals only

This interactive meeting will provide an opportunity for corporate in-house counsel and other in-house professionals to share in a productive conversation with counterparts from around the world.  The theme this year is global pro bono. Participants will learn about a new global association of in-house counsel, the Association of Corporate Pro Bono, and then join an interactive session with peers. Outlining challenges but focusing on opportunities will be the task of participants in this engaging conversation.

11am CEST/5pm HKT – Asia Pacific & Europe

11am EDT/5pm CEST – Americas & Europe

  • Maree Myerscough, General Counsel, Asia Pacific, Aquila Capital
  • Aurelie LeConte, Legal Transformation / EMEA Pro Bono Coordinator, BNP Paribas
  • Patricia Graves, Global Investment Research Division, Goldman Sachs
  • Val Farkas, Pro Bono Chair, Bloomberg
DETAILS
Session Rooms
October 20, 2020

3am EDT/ 9am CEST/ 3pm HKT

Welcome from PILnet in Europe and Asia

Speakers:

  • Jean-Luc Bedos, PILnet Board of Directors
  • Judit Geller, Senior Legal Officer, PILnet
  • Julia Mayerhofer, Director for Asia, PILnet
  • Alan Schiffman, PILnet Board of Directors

 

DETAILS
Main Stage

 3:15am EDT/9:15am CEST/3:15pm HKT

Examples of Legal Professionals Tackling Climate Change

During this session, examples of law professionals helping to tackle climate change will be presented and discussed.

One example is The Chancery Lane Project (TCLP) a collaborative pro bono initiative that mobilises the legal profession to rewrite contracts and laws to tackle the climate crisis. Solicitors, barristers, and academics from over 80 firms and organisations, have collaborated on the project. 

This conversation will be joined by representatives of global law firms, presenting examples of providing legal support to NGOs and developing country delegations in relation to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and advising governments to build a climate resilient green economy by ensuring sustainable environment and forest management, development and utilisation, as well as working with private sector to counter climate change

Moderator: Gabriela Christian-Hare, CEO, Australian Pro Bono Centre

Speakers:

  • Ozlem Altıparmak, Lawyer, Vice President, Rights and Research Association
  • Claire Donse, International Head of Pro Bono, DLA Piper
  • Kelly Fermont, Senior Risk & Compliance Manager, Vodafone Business
  • Ellie Mulholland, Director, Commonwealth Climate and Law Initiative
  • Marion Palmer, Senior Scientist, Hogan Lovells

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Session Room

3:15am EDT/9:15am CEST/3:15pm HKT

How Pro Bono Lawyers Can Help Unaccompanied and Undocumented Children in Europe Gain Safety and Stability

Join this panel discussion to learn about KIND’s work responding to the needs of unaccompanied and undocumented children in Europe.

In the session, you will:  

  • gain a better understanding of the experience and needs of unaccompanied and undocumented children in Europe; 
  • hear the lessons that KIND has learned about designing and implementing effective pro bono programs that deliver high quality, child-centred legal assistance; 
  • see first-hand how KIND and its local partners have adapted the pro bono model to respond to the needs and unique circumstances of unaccompanied children in four countries in continental Europe and the UK; and 
  • learn how you and your law firm, non-profit or company can get involved in providing legal assistance to unaccompanied children in Europe and children eligible for citizenship or leave to remain in the UK who need your help right now.

Moderator: Lisa Frydman, Vice President for International Programs, Kids in Need of Defense

Speakers:

  • Sue Bent, Chief Exective, Central England Law Centre
  • Loys Conseil, Project Manager, Alliance of Lawyers for Human Rights
  • Siobhan Johnston, Legal Caseworker, Immigrant Council of Ireland/Irish Refugee Council
  • Eithne Lynch, Pro Bono Associate, A&L Goodbody
  • Philip Worthington, Managing Director, European Lawyers in Lesvos

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Session Room

4:30am EDT/10:30am CEST/4:30pm HKT

Networking Break

5am EDT/11am CEST/5pm HKT

Collaboration to Tackle Grand Corruption

The session looks at the collaboration between and roles of investigative journalists, anti-corruption NGOs, pro bono brokers and pro bono lawyers.

The panelists will also discuss challenges of collaboration, including choosing the right jurisdiction, alternative legal procedures when law enforcement is not an option, potential conflicts of interest, security challenges, access and use of evidence, and questions of journalistic independence.

Moderator: Adam Foldes, Legal Advisor, Transparency International

Speakers:

  • Paul Radu, Co-founder and Chief of Innovation, OCCRP
  • Till Steinvorth, Partner, Noerr
  • Joe Tan, Pro Bono Legal Services Manager, A4ID
  • Eva van der Merwe, Global Programmes Director and co-head, International Lawyer’s Project and Partner

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Session Room

5am EDT/11am CEST/5pm HKT

Understanding a Trafficking Survivor’s Journey

The session will give an overview of a trafficking survivor’s journey, from understanding the vulnerabilities and root causes of the first step to migration, to the identification phase, protection needs, and analysis of potential solutions.

The session is framed as an interactive storytelling/case study presentation of the pathway of a vulnerable individual in a mixed migration journey. Insights from experts in each of the identified phases will be shared and the role of lawyers providing support at all levels will be discussed. The session will be moderated by Sophie Otiende, teacher, feminist, and survivor of human trafficking, to ensure that the discussion never loses the perspective of the story’s ultimate protagonist.

Moderator: Sophie Otiende, Regional Operations Manager – Africa, Liberty Shared

Speakers:

  • Janice Chan, CEO, Sons & Daughters
  • Oleksandr Kyrylenko, Office of the OSCE, Special Representative and Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings
  • Leah Orwoba, Lawyer and Vice Chairperson, Victim Protection Board Kenya
DETAILS
Session Room

6:00am EDT/12:00pm CEST/6:00pm HKT

Networking Break

6:30am EDT/12:30pm CEST/6:30pm HKT

Strategic Litigation: What Works, What Doesn’t, and How Can Pro Bono Help?

The session will draw together different models of strategic litigation, focusing on national and regional courts in Europe and the procedures before the United Nations Treaty Bodies.

The panel will discuss and assess the strengths and weaknesses of the different ways NGOs can pursue “strategic litigation,” and how pro bono can be used to support this work. While NGOs learn practical tips to consider when developing a litigation strategy, pro bono lawyers will learn how to support this work and how to see this area from the NGO’s perspective.

Moderator: Paul Yates, Counsel, Freshfields

Speakers:

  • Merryl Lawry-White, Senior Associate, Debevoise & Plimpton
  • Markella Papadouli, Instructor and Director of the Roma Program, The AIRE Center
  • Adam Weiss, Head of Ocean, Plastics, and Chemicals, ClientEarth

 

DETAILS
Session Room

7:30am EDT/1:30pm CEST/7:30pm HKT

Networking Break

8am EDT/2pm CEST/8pm HKT

Rethinking Technology, Pro Bono, and Access to Justice

This session focuses on the intersection between technology and pro bono/public interest law.

Current pro bono and public interest law efforts to close the justice gap rely on either getting more lawyers to donate their services or on selecting cases that have a strategic impact. Both approaches tend to be more reactive than preemptive and, as a result, leave much of law’s potential untapped. In light of this concern, this session looks at ways that technology (or more specifically emerging technology-enabled tools and platforms) could maximize access to justice, and thereby shape the future of pro bono and public interest law.

Moderator: Garth Meintjes, Executive Director, PILnet

Speakers:

  • Carlos Manjarrez, Chief Data Officer, Legal Services Corporation
  • Rachael Mishambi, Programme Manager – Uganda, The Hague Institute for Innovation of Law
  • Roman Reimer, Head of Legal Department, Wings of Liberty
  • Helena Whalen-Bridge, Associate Professor, National University of Singapore

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Session Room

8am EDT/2pm CEST/8pm HKT

Impact of Covid-19 on People in Vulnerable Situations

The Covid-19 pandemic affects people around the world differently due to pre-existing structural inequalities, power structures, and cultural and social norms within our societies. 

While the pandemic is ongoing and the full implications of Covid-19 are not yet predictable, we already know that people in vulnerable situations are hit disproportionately and the hardest by the crisis. This session aims to provide an insight into the effects of the virus on the human rights of those living in vulnerable situations, discuss what needs to be done, and how pro bono can help to better respond to existing structural inequalities.

Moderator: Timothy Fish Hodgson, Legal Advisor, International Commission of Jurists

Speakers:

  • Marek Balaz, Human Rights Monitoring Coordinator, European Roma Rights Centre
  • Christoph Kueppers, Partner, Hogan Lovells
  • Katrine Thomasen, Senior Legal Advisor, Center for Reproductive Rights

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Session Room

9:00am EDT/3:00pm CEST/9:00pm HKT

Networking Break

9:15am EDT/3:15pm CEST/9:15pm HKT

Welcome from PILnet in North America

Speakers:

  • Travis Rundlet, PILnet Board of Directors
  • Suzanne Turner, PILnet Board of Directors
DETAILS
Main Stage

9:30am EDT/3:30pm CEST/9:30pm HKT

Featured Session: Addressing Systemic Racism

Panelists discuss the legal sector’s role in combating the policies and practices that create and maintain racial discrimination.

It’s no secret that institutional policies and practices historically created and currently maintain racial discrimination. The movements for Black Lives, against Apartheid, and for Roma rights are powerful calls to reject systemic racism in our societies. Lawyers and advocates  everywhere have a role to play in combating the policies and practices that create and maintain racial discrimination. Participants will compare experiences and strategies used in different contexts and offer a vision for making the most of the momentum for change that we are witnessing today.

Moderator: Jacquelyn MacLennan, Partner, White & Case

Speakers:

  • Nersan Govender, National Director, Legal Resources Centre
  • Margareta Matache, Instructor and Director of the Roma Program, Harvard University FXB Center for Health and Human Rights
  • Vincent Warren, Executive Director, Center for Constitutional Rights

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Main Stage

10:30am EDT/4:30pm CEST/10:30pm HKT

Networking Break

11am EDT/5pm CEST/11pm HKT

Keynote Session: The Justice Gap and the Legal Profession

In this keynote session, speakers discuss diversity in the legal profession, the use of data to measure access to justice, and innovative solutions for sustainable development — all to increase pro bono’s impact. Featuring keynote speaker Dev Stahlkopf, General Counsel of Microsoft.

Today, pro bono lawyers are more active, creative, and courageous than ever before. To ensure genuine and lasting impact, we must acknowledge the lack of diversity in the profession that does not currently reflect the communities served, examine the data measuring current unmet legal needs and justice gaps, and innovate on solutions such as how the Sustainable Development Goals as a framework could offer some intriguing approaches to closing these gaps. Join us for this engaging session with leading lawyers and social science researchers at the forefront of thinking how we can increase pro bono’s impact.

Moderator: Garth Meintjes, Executive Director, PILnet

Keynote Speaker: Dev Stahlkopf, Corporate Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, Microsoft Corporation

Speakers:

  • Elizabeth Andersen, Executive Director, World Justice Project
  • Sarah E. Mendelson, Distinguished Service Professor of Public Policy, Head of Heinz College in DC, Carnegie Mellon University

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Main Stage

12:30pm EDT/6:30pm CEST/12:30am HKT

2020 Publico Award Ceremony

Join us to recognize legal professionals with an extraordinary, passionate, and long-standing commitment to service for the public good.

Main Stage

12:45pm EDT/6:45pm CEST/12:45am HKT

Climate Change, Human Rights, and Public Interest Law

This session will explore the interconnections between climate change, human rights, and public interest law emphasizing access to justice to enforce climate and human rights obligations.

 The content will draw on contemporary developments in international law (Aarhus Convention), EU law and Irish Law. Respect for the rule of (environmental) law is essential to achieve a sustainable society that values and respects the environment.  It falls to practitioners, legal scholars, and activists to develop and deploy arguments to force government action on climate breakdown, biodiversity loss, and the existential risk of ecological and societal collapse. The session also considers how to involve law students (the next generation of public interest lawyers and advocates) in a range of initiatives relating to these issues.

 

Moderator: Aine Ryall, Co-Director, Centre for Law and the Environment University College

Speakers:

  • Eilis Barry, Chief Executive, Free Legal Advice Centres
  • David Fennelly, Assistant Professor, School of Law, Trinity College Dublin
  • Andrew Jackson, Assistant Professor of Environmental Law, University College Dublin
  • Fred Logue, Solicitor, FP Logue Solicitors
  • Cara O’Mahony, Research Assistant, Centre for Law and Environment, University College Cork
DETAILS
Main Stage

1:45pm EDT/7:45pm CEST/1:45am HKT

Networking Break

2pm EDT/8pm CEST/2am HKT

A Conversation with Rebecca Sandefur

Join the Association of Pro Bono Counsel in a conversation with sociologist Rebecca Sandefur, who investigates access to civil justice from every angle.

She will discuss her work, from how legal services are delivered and consumed, to how civil legal aid is organized around the United States, to the role of pro bono, to the relative efficacy of lawyers, nonlawyers and digital tools as advisers and representation, to how ordinary people think about their justice problems and try to resolve them.

Moderators:

  • Anne Geraghty Helms, Director & Counsel, US Pro Bono Programs at DLA Piper
  • Paul Yates, Counsel, Freshfields

Speakers:

  • Rebecca Sandefur, Professor in the School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University
DETAILS
Main Stage

2:30pm EDT/8:30pm CEST/2:30am HKT

Networking Break

2:45pm EDT/8:45pm CEST/2:45am HKT

Examples of Legal Professionals Tackling Climate Change

Encore Presentation

During this session, examples of law professionals helping to tackle climate change will be presented and discussed.

Moderator: Gabriela Christian-Hare, CEO, Australian Pro Bono Centre

Speakers:

  • Ozlem Altıparmak, Lawyer, Vice President, Rights and Research Association
  • Claire Donse, International Head of Pro Bono, DLA Piper
  • Kelly Fermont, Senior Risk & Compliance Manager, Vodafone Business
  • Ellie Mulholland, Director, Commonwealth Climate and Law Initiative
  • Marion Palmer, Senior Scientist, Hogan Lovells
DETAILS
Main Stage

4:00pm EDT/10:00pm CEST/4:00am HKT

Networking Break

4:15pm EDT/10:5pm CEST/4:15am HKT

How Pro Bono Lawyers Can Help Unaccompanied and Undocumented Children in Europe Gain Safety and Stability

Encore Presentation

Join this panel discussion to learn about the KIND’s work responding to the needs of unaccompanied and undocumented children in Europe.

In the session, you will:

  • gain a better understanding of the experience and needs of unaccompanied and undocumented children in Europe;
  • hear the lessons that KIND has learned about designing and implementing effective pro bono programs that deliver high quality, child-centred legal assistance;
  • see first-hand how KIND and its local partners have adapted the pro bono model to respond to the needs and unique circumstances of unaccompanied children in four countries in continental Europe and of undocumented children in the UK; and
  • learn how you and your law firm, non-profit or company can get involved in providing legal assistance to unaccompanied children in Europe and children eligible for citizenship or leave to remain in the UK that need your help right now.

Moderator: Lisa Frydman, Author, Kids in Need of Defense

Speakers:

  • Loys Conseil, Project Manager, Alliance of Lawyers for Human Rights
  • Siobhan Johnston, Immigrant Council of Ireland/Irish Refugee Council
  • Eithne Lynch, Associate, A&L Goodbody
  • Philip Worthington, Managing Partner, European Lawyers in Lesvos
DETAILS
Main Stage

5:30pm EDT/11:30pm CEST/5:30am HKT

Networking Break

5:45pm EDT/11:45pm CEST/5:45am HKT

Collaboration to Tackle Grand Corruption

Encore Presentation

The session looks into the collaboration and roles of investigative journalists, anti-corruption NGOs, pro bono brokers and pro bono lawyers.

The panelists will also discuss challenges of collaboration, including choosing the right jurisdiction, alternative legal procedures when law enforcement is not an option, potential conflicts of interest, security challenges, access and use of evidence, and questions of journalistic independence.

Moderator: Adam Foldes, Advocacy Advisor, Transparency International

Speakers:

  • Paul Radu, Co-founder and Chief of Innovation, OCCRP
  • Till Steinvorth, Partner, Noerr
  • Joe Tan, Deputy Head of Partnerships & Legal Services, A4ID
  • Eva van der Merwe, International Lawyer’s Project and Partner, Transparency International
DETAILS
Main Stage
October 21, 2020

9pm EDT/3am CEST/9am HKT

Welcome Back from PILnet in Asia

Speakers:

  • Ding Chen, Assistant Director for Hong Kong, PILnet
  • Heng-Pin Kiang, Co-Chair, PILnet Board of Directors

 

DETAILS
Main Stage

9:15pm EDT/3:15am CEST/9:15am HKT

Featured Session: Addressing Systemic Racism

Encore Presentation

Panelists discuss the legal sector’s role in combating the policies and practices that create and maintain racial discrimination.

It’s no secret that institutional policies and practices historically created and currently maintain racial discrimination. The movements for Black Lives, against Apartheid, and for Roma rights are powerful calls to reject systemic racism in our societies. Lawyers and advocates  everywhere have a role to play in combating the policies and practices that create and maintain racial discrimination. Participants will compare experiences and strategies used in different contexts and offer a vision for making the most of the momentum for change that we are witnessing today.

Moderator: Jacquelyn MacLennan, Partner, White & Case

Speakers:

  • Nersan Govender, National Director, Legal Resources Centre
  • Margareta Matache, Instructor and Director of the Roma Program, Harvard University FXB Center for Health and Human Rights
  • Vincent Warren, Executive Director, Center for Constitutional Rights
DETAILS
Main Stage

10:15pm EDT/4:15am CEST/10:15am HKT

Networking Break

10:45pm EDT/4:45am CEST/10:45am HKT

Keynote Session: The Justice Gap and the Legal Profession

Encore Presentation

In this keynote session, speakers discuss diversity in the legal profession, the use of data to measure access to justice, and innovative solutions for sustainable development — all to increase pro bono’s impact. Featuring keynote speaker Dev Stahlkopf, General Counsel of Microsoft.

Today, pro bono lawyers are more active, creative, and courageous than ever before. To ensure genuine and lasting impact, we must acknowledge the lack of diversity in the profession that does not currently reflect the communities served, examine the data measuring current unmet legal needs and justice gaps, and innovate on solutions such as how the Sustainable Development Goals as a framework could offer some intriguing approaches to closing these gaps. Join us for this engaging session with leading lawyers and social science researchers at the forefront of thinking how we can increase pro bono’s impact.

Moderator: Garth Meintjes, Executive Director, PILnet

Keynote Speaker: Dev Stahlkopf, Corporate Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, Microsoft Corporation

Speakers:

  • Elizabeth Andersen, Executive Director, World Justice Project
  • Sarah E. Mendelson, Distinguished Service Professor of Public Policy and Head of Heinz College in DC, Carnegie Mellon University
DETAILS
Main Stage

12:15am EDT/6:15am CEST/12:15pm HKT

Networking Break

12:45am EDT/6:45am CEST/12:45pm HKT

Rethinking Technology, Pro Bono, and Access to Justice

Encore Presentation

This session focuses on the intersection between technology and pro bono/public interest law.

Current pro bono and public interest law efforts to close the justice gap rely on either getting more lawyers to donate their services or on selecting cases that have a strategic impact. Both approaches tend to be more reactive than preemptive and, as a result, leave much of law’s potential untapped. In light of this concern, this session looks at ways that technology (or more specifically emerging technology-enabled tools and platforms) could maximize access to justice, and thereby shape the future of pro bono and public interest law.

Moderator: Garth Meintjes, Executive Director, PILnet

Speakers:

  • Carlos Manjarrez, Chief Data Officer, Legal Services Corporation
  • Rachael Mishambi, Programme Manager – Uganda, The Hague Institute for Innovation of Law
  • Roman Reimer, Head of Legal Department, Wings of Liberty
  • Helena Whalen-Bridge, Associate Professor, National University of Singapore
DETAILS
Main Stage

1:45am EDT/7:45am CEST/1:45pm HKT

Networking Break

2am EDT/8am CEST/2pm HKT

Impact of Covid-19 on People in Vulnerable Situations

Encore Presentation

The Covid-19 pandemic affects people around the world differently due to already existing structural inequalities, power structures, and cultural and social norms within our societies.

While the pandemic is ongoing and the full implications of Covid-19 are not yet predictable, we already know that people in vulnerable situations are hit disproportionately and the hardest by the crisis. This session aims to provide an insight into the effects of the virus on the human rights of those living in vulnerable situations, discuss what needs to be done, and how pro bono can help to better respond to existing structural inequalities.

Moderator: Timothy Fish Hodgson, Legal Advisor, International Commission of Jurists

Speakers:

  • Marek Balaz, Human Rights Monitoring Coordinator, European Roma Rights Centre
  • Christoph Kueppers, Partner, Hogan Lovells
  • Katrine Thomassen, Senior Legal Advisor, Center for Reproductive Rights
DETAILS
Main Stage

3:00am EDT/9:00am CEST/3:00pm HKT

Networking Break

3:15am EDT/9:15am CEST/3:15pm HKT

Welcome Back from PILnet in Europe

Speakers:

  • Andrej Nosko, Director for Europe, PILnet
  • Diane Stewart, PILnet Board of Directors
DETAILS
Main Stage

3:30am EDT/9:30am CEST/3:30pm HKT

Impact Investment and SDG 16

Can SDG 16 projects take advantage of the recent trend of impact investment?  

UN SDG 16 calls for all stakeholders to “promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.” We have seen impact investment being used to further the achievements on other goals.  However, so far, there are limited examples of impact investment being used to benefit projects within the scope of goal 16, particularly in Asia. The session aims to explore how social impact investment could be deployed in rule of law and access to justice projects. The session presenters include lawyers, think-tank/academics, and non-profit sector leaders working in this field.  They will share their learnings from different sectors and regions, and discuss the existing limitations and challenges as well as opportunities posed by impact investment towards achieving goal 16.

Moderator: Kristin Bong, Allen & Overy

Speakers:

  • Laura Kistemaker, Co-founder and COO, Justice42
  • Ronald Lenz, Director Justice Accelerator, HiiL
  • Simon Miller, General Counsel, Save the Children Australia
  • Johannes Schreuder, Inclusive Dialogue with Business Lead, PeaceNexus

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Session Room

3:30am EDT/9:30am CEST/3:30pm HKT

Partnering for Children’s Rights: Unfolding Collaborations

This session will be a follow up discussion from the very well received panel at the 2019 PILnet Global Forum in Singapore titled “Partnering for Child Justice.”

While in Singapore speakers identified the key ingredients for ensuring effective partnerships between civil society organizations, child rights advocates, clearinghouses and law firms in the area of child justice, this year we will present concrete examples of successful collaborations to advance children’s rights.

Moderator: Judit Geller, Senior Legal Officer, PILnet

Speakers:

  • Szilvia Gyurko, Child Rights Expert, Hintalovon Child Rights Foundation
  • Lamin Khadar, Pro Bono Manager, Dentons
  • Wirawan (Boom) Mosby, Founder and Director, The Hug Project
  • Priya Watwani, Senior Program Analyst, iProBono

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Session Room

4:45am EDT/10:45am CEST/4:45pm HKT

Networking Break

5:15am EDT/11:15am CEST/5:15 HKT

Protecting the Future of the Planet

Responding, mitigating and coping with climate change is among so called wicked problems, a problem that appears as difficult or even impossible to solve because of incomplete, contradictory, and changing requirements that are often difficult to recognize. 

Civil society has been at the forefront of identifying the most urgent tasks to be prioritized, and leading the social change required to deal with climate change. In this session some of the examples of this work will be discussed, with the specific focus on how these efforts can be supported by the legal profession.

Moderator: Rowan Ryrie, gounding Member, Parents for Future

Speakers:

  • Maria Generosa Mislang, Volunteer Lawyer, Alternative Law Groups
  • Jane Davidson, Pro Vice-Chancellor Emeritus, University of Wales Trinity Saint David
  • Richard J. Rogers, Executive Director, Climate Counsel
  • Dennis van Berkel, Co-Director Climate Litigation Network, Urgenda

This session will have an encore presentation later in the forum.

DETAILS
Session Room

6:30am EDT/12:30pm CEST/6:30pm HKT

Networking Break

7am EDT/1pm CEST/7pm HKT

Working with Vulnerable Clients: Trauma-Informed Advice from Clinical Psychologists

Join this practically focused session in which two experienced clinical psychologists will share their expertise and knowledge about how to work with clients who have suffered trauma with sensitivity and care.

The session will cover the way in which trauma impacts clients’ engagement with lawyers and describe how trauma impacts memory and informs perceptions of credibility. The speakers will introduce trauma-informed interviewing skills aimed at helping lawyers to obtain the best possible evidence from their clients in the most sensitive and least traumatizing manner. The speakers will touch on the risks of vicarious traumatization for people working with this client group and exposed to traumatic material.

Moderator: Becca Naylor,  Head of Pro Bono, EMEA, Reed Smith

Speakers:

  • Jocelyn Blumberg, Clinical Psychologist, Blue Room Psychology and Trauma Services
  • Mary Robertson, Consultant Clinical Psychologist

 

DETAILS
Session Room

7:30am EDT/1:30pm CEST/7:30pm HKT

Networking Break

8am EDT/2pm CEST/8pm HKT

Welcome Back from PILnet in North America

Speakers:

  • Leila Saad, Deputy Director, PILnet
  • Laura Tuell, PILnet Board of Directors
DETAILS
Main Stage

8:15am EDT/2:15pm CEST/8:15pm HKT

2020 Global Awards Ceremony

Award for Exemplary Partnership in the Public Interest is awarded to the best pro bono legal project undertaken as a cross-sectoral collaboration, with an impact felt in more than one country.

Award for Local Pro Bono Impact honors the best innovative pro bono legal project at the local or national level.

Speakers:

  • Eric Koenig, PILnet Board of Directors
  • Barbara Schatz, PILnet Board of Directors
DETAILS
Main Stage

8:30am EDT/2:30pm CEST/8:30pm HKT

Networking Break

9am EDT/3pm CEST/9pm HKT

Featured Session: Mobilizing the Global Legal Community to Protect and Find Solutions for Refugees and Others Forcibly Displaced

Come join PILnet, UNHCR and other partners to learn more about the joint pledge made at last year’s Global Refugee Forum and to discuss how to contribute to PILnet and partners’ collaborative project on forced displacement.

The joint pledge made by law firms, bar associations, corporations, and civil society organizations aims to support efforts to protect and find solutions for refugees and others forcibly displaced. The United Nations High Commissioner (UNHCR), PILnet, and partners will provide an update on progress to action the pledge and discuss the findings of a legal needs assessment conducted with law firms and civil society that work with and for forcibly displaced persons. During facilitated discussions, participants will be able to help shape the realization of the pledge, including by providing their input and feedback on the activities being planned and by signing on to the pledge if they wish to do so.

Moderator: Julia Mayerhofer, Director for Asia, PILnet

Speakers:

  • Lynette Nam, Partnerships Manager, Justice Center Hong Kong
  • Jasmine Simperingham, Global Project Coordinator, PILnet
  • Shahrzad Tadjbakhsh, Deputy Director in Division of International Protection, UNHCR
DETAILS
Main Stage

10:15am EDT/4:15pm CEST/10:15pm HKT

Networking Break

10:45am EDT/4:45pm CEST/10:45pm HKT

Spark Talks: Covid-19 and Legal Responses

Leilani Farah, former UN Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, and Isabelle Granger, Global Legislative Advocacy Coordinator, International Federation of the Red Cross, discuss the legal response in their respective fields to the Covid-19 pandemic

The Covid-19 Housing Crisis

  • Speaker: Leilani Farha, Global Director, The Shift

IFRC Disaster Law and Covid-19

  • Speaker: Isabelle Granger, Legislative Advocacy Coordinator, International Federation of the Red Cross
DETAILS
Main Stage

11:45am EDT/5:45pm CEST/11:45pm HKT

Networking Break

12:15pm EDT/6:15pm CEST/12:15pm HKT

Building Legal Resilience to SLAPPs

The session aims to discuss efforts that exist globally to build resilience of human rights defenders and civil society organizations, media outlets, journalists to acts of legal intimidation and harassment by abusive lawsuits (sometimes called SLAPPs, or Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) targeting the their activities, speech, advocacy, and ultimately their existence.

Speakers will identify the  global trends on scale, nature, and common qualities of SLAPPs in the world, how the problem affects different public watchdogs, and how to respond and unite stakeholders in recognition of the threat posed by these abusive lawsuits. 

Moderator: Andrej Nosko, Director for Europe, PILnet

Speakers:

  • Francesca Fanucci, Senior Legal Advisor, European Center for Not-For-Profit-Law
  • Charlie Holt, Legal Counsel for Campaigns, Greenpeace International
  • Katie Redford, Executive Director, Equation Campaign
  • Lady Nancy Zuluaga Jaramillo, Legal Researcher, Human Rights Defenders & Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation, Business and Human Rights Resource Centre

 

DETAILS
Session Room

12:15pm EDT/6:15pm CEST/12:15pm HKT

Contemporary Issues in Digital Rights and Privacy

The impact of data and technology on people is among the biggest challenges of our time.

Data has become the world’s most valuable commodity, and the rapid rise of unregulated technology has ushered in new forms of discrimination, challenging the traditional notions of privacy and ownership. The ethical, practical, and legal ramifications of technology are complex and crucial. The implications for people’s lives are immense. The panellists will discuss priority actions to ensure data rights, and particularly data privacy, are upheld in the future. The discussion will focus on practical activities that require additional support to scale or start in an impactful way. 

Moderator: Adriano Mancinelli, TrustLaw Programme Manger, Thomson Reuters Foundation

Speakers:

  • Jacqueline Klosek, Counsel Goodwin Proctor
  • Matthew Linares, Technical and Publications Manager, openDemocracy
  • Peter Micek, General Counsel, Access Now
DETAILS
Session Room

1:15pm EDT/7:15pm CEST/1:15am HKT

Networking Break

1:45pm EDT/ 7:45pm CEST/ 1:45am HKT

Impact Investment and SDG 16

Can SDG 16 projects take advantage of the recent trend of impact investment?

Encore Presentation

UN SDG 16 calls for all stakeholders to “promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.” We have seen impact investment being used to further the achievements on other goals.  However, so far, there are limited examples of impact investment being used to benefit projects within the scope of goal 16, particularly in Asia. The session aims to explore how social impact investment could be deployed in rule of law and access to justice projects. The session presenters include lawyers, think-tank/academics, and non-profit sector leaders working in this field.  They will share their learnings from different sectors and regions, and discuss the existing limitations and challenges as well as opportunities posed by impact investment towards achieving goal 16.

Moderator: Kristin Bong, Allen & Overy

Speakers:

  • Laura Kistemaker, Co-founder and COO, Justice42
  • Ronald Lenz, Director Justice Accelerator, Transparency International
  • Simon Miller, General Counsel, Save the Children Australia
  • Johannes Schreuder, Inclusive Dialogue with Business Lead, PeaceNexus
DETAILS
Main Stage

3:00pm EDT/9:00pm CEST/3:00am HKT

Networking Break

3:30pm EDT/ 9:30pm CEST/ 3:30am HKT

Partnering for Children’s Rights: Unfolding Collaborations

This session will be a follow up discussion from the very well received panel at the 2019 PILnet Global Forum in Singapore titled “Partnering for Child Justice.”

Encore Presentation

While in Singapore speakers identified the key ingredients for ensuring effective partnerships between civil society organizations, child rights advocates, clearinghouses and law firms in the area of child justice, this year we will present concrete examples of successful collaborations to advance children’s rights.

Moderator: Judit Geller, Senior Legal Officer, PILnet

Speakers:

  • Szilvia Gyurko, Child Rights Expert, Hintalovon Child Rights Foundation
  • Lamin Khadar, Pro Bono Manager, Dentons
  • Wirawan (Boom) Mosby, Founder and Director, The Hug Project
  • Priya Watwani, Senior Program Analyst, iProBono
DETAILS
Main Stage

4:45pm EDT/10:45pm CEST/4:45am HKT

Networking Break

5:15pm EDT/ 11:15pm CEST/ 5:15am HKT

Protecting the Future of the Planet

Responding, mitigating and coping with climate change is among so called wicked problems, a problem that appears as difficult or even impossible to solve because of incomplete, contradictory, and changing requirements that are often difficult to recognize.

Encore Presentation

Civil society has been at the forefront of identifying the most urgent tasks to be prioritized, and leading the social change required to deal with climate change. In this session some of the examples of this work will be discussed, with the specific focus on how these efforts can be supported by the legal profession.

Moderator: Rowan Ryrie, Parents for Future

Speakers:

  • Maria Generosa Mislang, Volunteer Lawyer, Alternative Law Groups
  • Jane Davidson, Pro Vice-Chancellor Emeritus, University of Wales Trinity Saint David
  • Richard J. Rogers, Executive Director, Climate Counsel
  • Dennis van Berkel, Co-Director Climate Litigation Network, Urgenda
DETAILS
Main Stage