Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has been awarded Domestic Law Firm of the Year at the TrustLaw Awards 2016, the sixth annual TrustLaw Awards ceremony held in New York on September 22, 2016.

The award recognises Norton Rose Fulbright’s work on 20 TrustLaw referred matters ranging from:

• advising Zip Zap Circus School Trust on a loan and mortgage agreement,
• assisting Visayan with research on employment conditions in the fishing industry in South Africa, and advice on Seafarer Protections,
• working with Embrace Dignity on an application to decriminalising sex work,
• advising CBA, Malawi, in the establishment of a working relationship with Agricultural Commodity for Africa (ACE),
• advising Waste to Food (Pty) Ltd on a business structure and drafting of standard permanent and temporary employment agreements.

The TrustLaw Awards celebrate the exceptional work done by the legal teams in the TrustLaw network with high impact NGOs and social enterprises around the world, and highlight the outstanding achievements of lawyers, non-profit organisations and social enterprises from 170 countries across Africa, Latin-America and Asia.

Liesl Williams, director in the public interest team at Norton Rose Fulbright South Africa, commented:
“We are passionate about using our legal skills to drive social change in our communities. At Norton Rose Fulbright, pro bono is an integral part of how we do business. We have an established tradition of doing pro bono work that long predates the regulatory requirements we have in South Africa today. We are proud that we exceed the regulatory requirements by more than 50%.”

The firm is committed to giving under-represented communities access to justice where the majority of South Africans cannot access legal services.

“We strive to close this gap, reaching out to individuals, NGOs, social entrepreneurs and start-up businesses. South Africa has a vibrant pro bono community and it is rewarding to see the growth over the 9 years that I have been involved”, said Williams.