HHR Retains Spot Among Top Firms on AmLaw’s Pro Bono List

July 16, 2020 — Hughes Hubbard again secured one of the top spots in The American Lawyer’s annual pro bono special report, ranking third among Big Law firms for U.S. pro bono commitment in 2019.

The ranking marked the fourth time in five years that HHR was ranked as a top five firm. In the special report, published in the magazine’s July edition, HHR came in third place nationally with a 111.9 pro bono score. The rankings are based on a score that combines the percentage of lawyers who performed 20 or more hours of pro bono work with the average number of hours contributed in 2019.

The American Lawyer ranked those components independently, placing HHR third in average hours with 141.2 hours per U.S. lawyer and 11th in breadth of commitment (percentage of lawyers who performed 20 or more pro bono hours). The report showed that 82.7 percent of HHR’s lawyers performed at least 20 hours of pro bono work.

In 2019, immigration remained a cornerstone of HHR’s pro bono program, with attorneys working on over 110 immigration matters. Among the life-changing results were winning asylum for three clients from the Republic of Mali, Central African Republic and Turkey; helping a Honduran mother reunite with her 6-year-old son who was separated at the border after securing her release from immigration detention on bond; and paving the way for several unaccompanied minors to receive green cards.

In other pro bono victories, the firm won the early release of a client who served more than 26 years in prison after being convicted by a jury of selling crack cocaine; and obtained affirmance of a summary judgment decision dismissing a $10 million civil rights action against New York City and two former police officers in New York.