Quinn Emanuel Boosts Its Pro Bono Commitment and Bonus Credit Bucket for Associates
Quinn Emanuel is dramatically expanding its four-decade-long pro bono program to support the underserved, set miscarriages of justice right, and offer young associates the satisfaction and invaluable litigation experience this work provides.
As we remember the commitment of our dear friend and late General Counsel and National Securities Practice Chair Harry Olivar, Jr. to the firm and the community, we’re changing the way we credit pro bono hours for bonus purposes firmwide. We’re better compensating our attorneys for their remarkable work in the area and hiring a full-time pro bono counsel to focus on our efforts in the U.S.
“We’re very committed to professionalizing and making sure that we are providing our associates the best opportunities to get the trial experience, and pro bono can be really a great way to do that,” Marc Greenwald, a trial partner at Quinn and partner in charge of the New York pro bono practice, told Law.com.
Rather than being part of the 100-hour bonus credit bucket for recruiting, marketing, pro bono and the like, pro bono hours will now be separately credited – hour for hour up to 200 hours a year – for bonus purposes.
Flexible Cap for Big Cases
In addition, because we will continue to take on important pro bono work that requires our trial skills, managing partners of each office will be permitted to extend that cap in individual cases – for example, when an associate is working on a case of national importance like the Abrego Garcia matter. In that case, we successfully fought for Kilmar Abrego Garcia after the U.S. dispatched him to a notorious prison in El Salvador despite a court order against it.
Among the innumerable other cases in which the firm’s pro bono efforts have paid off over the decades is the recent vindication of Edward Wright. Our client was freed after being wrongfully convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole, spending four decades behind bars. Quinn and another firm got the conviction overturned in September.
Since its founding 40 years ago, Quinn Emanuel has used our unmatched trial skills to advocate for pro bono clients. As the largest and best litigation-only firm in the world, we have made our pro bono practice broad, including First Amendment, immigration, criminal justice, voting rights, terrorist victim compensation, and human rights.
Because trials take significant preparation, we have spent thousands of hours on these cases, including in representing Abrego Garcia in immigration proceedings in Maryland. The practice has also been a great experience for our lawyers, with many here getting their first jury addresses or trial witnesses in these cases.
The pro bono counsel will manage the practice, ensuring teams are fully supported. The counsel will work with the many legal services providers we partner with, so that we are working on the most impactful and important matters and putting our associates in positions to advocate for our pro bono clients. The counsel will implement best practices for pro bono cases and measure the effectiveness of the hours we invest in representing the underserved.
Leaders Among Trial Lawyers
The scope of the firm’s pro bono work hasn’t changed, as some of QE’s peers have ratcheted back on public interest work under the Trump administration’s scrutiny, Greenwald said. Also not changing: our commitment to giving each attorney the freedom to select pro bono projects worthy of their time and skills.
Harry made sure our work always reflected the highest values of the profession.
“This is just one small way in which we are honoring his memory here at Quinn Emanuel,” Greenwald told Law360.
As we re-emphasize our pro bono commitment, we strive to live up to his leadership as trial lawyers and members of the bar.
Law360 and Law.com are among the news media that covered our expanded pro bono commitment. Subscribers can read the Law360 article here and the Law.com article here.