On 1 March, Mayer Brown hosted a lunch seminar, “Pro Bono Opportunities: Street Law and University-based Legal Clinic", for lawyers, NGOs and law students in our Hong Kong office. Since 2013, the Street Law Programme (“Street Law”), as a core component of the University of Hong Kong’s clinical education, has bought together university students, NGOs, pro bono lawyers, community members, and secondary schools to advance legal literacy and access to justice in Asia and specifically in Hong Kong.
Participants attended a panel discussion moderated by Lindsay Ernst, Centre for Comparative and Public Law at the Faculty of Law, The University of Hong Kong. Panellists included Dr. Jeff Giddings (Monash University, Australia), Leni Widi Mulyani (University of Pasundan, Indonesia), and Ben Perdue (Street Law Inc., USA). They discussed ideas on how lawyers and law students can adopt similar model in their local pro bono practice to address the needs of the community they serve. Panellists also explored how law students and practitioners can get involved with the Street Law programmes and university-based legal clinics in Asia.
Street Law uses interactive methods to teach practical law lessons to non-legal professionals, marginalized community groups, and other members of the community.