Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr (CDH) has been recognised as the law firm which spent the most hours for the public good before the Labour Court for the fifth year in a row by the SA Society for Labour Law (SASLAW) Pro Bono project.

The SASLAW Pro Bono NPC Project has been running since February 2011, when the then Judge President of the Labour court, Mlambo JP, asked SASLAW to consider running a pilot project in the Johannesburg Labour Court. The association has 1,300 members, 5 chapters, 6 members of staff and is run by national and chapter committees. The members serve SASLAW and the Pro Bono NPC on a voluntary basis.

The indigent and needy are often not able to access high-level advice when they run into problems. But a concerted drive is taking place to extend access to justice to broader society, with leading firms like CDH committed to playing a major role in this regard by providing hundreds of hours of advice free of charge every year.

Three of CDH’s lawyers – Kirsten Caddy, Ndumiso Zwane and Inez Moosa – received awards at a function on Thursday evening at the CDH offices for their considerable efforts during the year. The total time in the advice office in Johannesburg by CDH amounted to 120 hours during the year.

“We are heartened by the success of this project and that we have managed to sustain our high level of support and input for so many years. The past year was a challenging one from an economic perspective and the number of matters, like retrenchments, increased as a consequence. We are really proud to have been able to bring access to justice to people who may never have received advice before. These are often the people most affected when economic conditions worsen as much as they have,” says head of CDH’s employment practice, Aadil Patel.

ASLAW Pro Bono NPC is a non-profit company formed by SASLAW to administer the Pro Bono project in the four Labour Courts in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. SASLAW was started in 1997, and is an association for those individuals who are involved in labour law in South Africa.

“We commend Aadil Patel, Gillian Lumb and their teams for going the extra mile and for their extraordinary efforts and contributions made in the public service, which has in turn enabled the greater good of the communities we serve. We also congratulate Kirsten Caddy and Ndumiso Zwane for the time spent in-service with the project. Their contributions are appreciated and we applaud them for their passion and dedication,” said CDH CEO Brent Williams.

“Social empowerment and the upliftment of communities in South Africa is crucial. We look forward to contributing services to those who otherwise have limited access to justice,” concluded Aadil Patel.

Submitted by Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr