Winston & Strawn’s Pro Bono Efforts Highlighted in American Lawyer

Winston & Strawn pro bono counsel Greg McConnell, based in the firm’s Chicago office, was quoted in the June 27, 2012 American Lawyer article titled “Changes in the law firm business model will affect pro bono. That might not be a bad thing.”

The article, which introduces American Lawyer's annual pro bono rankings by discussing trends in the pro bono practice of large firms, highlights the firm’s dramatic 56% rise in its pro bono score, jumping from 77 to 31.

On the increase, Mr. McConnell said much of it is due to the firm's efforts to increase involvement among all attorneys as illustrated by the development of a pro bono dashboard, and a connected monthly email sent out to the firm’s lawyers that includes interactive graphs and charts, allowing lawyers to see how their individual efforts line up with the firm’s goal of 35 hours of pro bono work per lawyer. The dashboard also measures the performance of the lawyer’s practice group and office, and provides links to current pro bono opportunities. According to Mr. McConnell, the dashboard has “helped to increase support and collective responsibility for pro bono efforts at the firm.”