Herbert Smith launches pioneering free legal assistance facility for the Government of Sierra Leone
Herbert Smith has launched a ground breaking new partnership with the Government of Sierra Leone. The partnership takes the form of a free legal assistance facility that can be accessed by Sierra Leone government officials, particularly those involved in attracting and supporting inward investment into the country, and was facilitated by the Africa Governance Initiative (AGI), an NGO operating in the region. The facility is designed to offer support where the government could not otherwise afford its own legal advice.
Herbert Smith has pledged to support this process by providing free legal assistance for an initial commitment period of one year. In addition to providing support from a wide range of the firm's partners and lawyers on a remote basis, the firm has also seconded a senior associate, Daniel Hoyle, to the Attorney General's office in the
Government of Sierra Leone for a period of five months. Based in
Freetown, Dan's role is to promote the facility to relevant government officials, help to establish the remote network and develop training programmes to build the capacity of Sierra Leone government lawyers.
The facility builds on the experience of Herbert Smith corporate partner Gavin Davies who lived in Sierra Leone and worked with the government for two months in the summer of 2010 while on his personal sabbatical.
Following a civil war that ended in 2002, Sierra Leone was ranked at the bottom of the UN Human Development Index, a benchmark of global poverty. Since 2007, Sierra Leone's first democratically elected government has been working hard to restore stability to the country, re-build the economy and ensure that the citizens of Sierra Leone can benefit from the country's natural resources.
Herbert Smith established the facility with the support of the Africa Governance Initiative. Commenting on the firm's involvement the AGI's founder and patron, Tony Blair, said:
"I am delighted that Herbert Smith is launching a programme of pro bono legal support to the Government of Sierra Leone. The advice that a top law firm like Herbert Smith can provide will be incredibly beneficial to the government of Sierra Leone in helping them to deliver the kind of sustainable, broad-based economic growth that will lift people out of poverty.
"I'm very pleased to say that our Africa Governance Initiative team have been able to help facilitate this programme, and I look forward to continuing this rewarding partnership in the future."
Herbert Smith Global Disputes Partner James Baily, who has been involved in establishing the facility, commented:
"This is a tremendously exciting opportunity for Herbert Smith to deploy its core skills to support economic growth in one of the poorest countries in the world and demonstrate its commitment to sustainable development in Africa. Following the AGI model, our support will focus on capacity building rather than live transactions.
Our intention is to work closely with relevant teams over the course of the year, both in country and remotely, providing training, background research and access to know-how in order that we can leave a legacy for future years."
The Government of Sierra Leone is already reaping the dividends of the facility. Herbert Smith was recently asked to advise at very short notice on a critical project. Within three days the firm had accepted the instruction, put together a team, reviewed the documentation and provided advice that the firm believes has the potential to save the country a significant sum of money.
In addition, lack of technology infrastructure is a key problem. If lawyers want to use PCs, they typically have to pay for them out of their own pocket, which is simply untenable for many government employees. Herbert Smith has recently donated PCs to all the lawyers within the Attorney General's office.
This article was originally posted on Sustainable Development Africa Platform
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