Pro Bono for Environmental Justice
Pro Publico matched the European Environmental Bureau (EEB) with a major international law firm to provide pro bono legal support for environmental justice, strengthening civil society work on access to justice in environmental matters across Europe.
Ensuring effective access to justice is a cornerstone of environmental democracy. Across the EU, complex legislation and diverging national practices can make it challenging for civil society organisations to defend environmental rights. In this context, expert legal analysis plays a crucial role in turning legal principles into enforceable rights. This was precisely the challenge faced by the European Environmental Bureau.
Defending environmental democracy in Europe
Access to justice, public participation, and access to information are fundamental pillars of environmental protection. These principles are enshrined in the Aarhus Convention, which binds the EU and its Member States.
However, translating these guarantees into effective rights at EU and national level remains an ongoing challenge. Legislative proposals must be carefully scrutinised, and national case law must be analysed in depth. Therefore, pro bono legal support for environmental justice can significantly enhance the capacity of NGOs working in this space.
The European Environmental Bureau: advancing environmental rights
The European Environmental Bureau is Europe’s largest network of environmental citizens’ organisations. It brings together over 180 member organisations across more than 40 countries.
EEB’s mission is to protect and improve the environment by influencing EU policy, promoting environmental democracy, and ensuring that environmental laws are properly implemented and enforced. A core part of its work focuses on access to justice, enabling citizens and organisations to hold decision-makers accountable.
By strengthening legal pathways for environmental protection, EEB seeks to create a Europe where environmental rights are meaningful, enforceable, and accessible to all.
Why EEB needed pro bono legal assistance
EEB’s law and justice team was working on several technically complex projects related to access to justice in environmental matters. These included assessing whether proposed EU legislation complied with the Aarhus Convention and analysing national case law in key jurisdictions.
Such work requires specialised legal expertise across multiple legal systems. EEB therefore sought pro bono legal assistance to strengthen the legal foundation of its advocacy to conduct in-depth comparative research on German and French case law.
A leading international law firm as a trusted partner
Through Pro Publico’s matchmaking, EEB was connected with a major international law firm known for its strong pro bono culture and expertise in public and environmental law.
The firm’s legal teams brought deep technical knowledge and a collaborative approach. This made them a valuable partner for an CSO working at the intersection of EU law, international conventions and national legal systems.
How the pro bono support was delivered
EEB was supported on two major strands of work. First, its legal teams conducted detailed research screening several EU legislative proposals for compliance with the Aarhus Convention. This analysis provided an external expert perspective on complex legal questions. As a result, EEB was able to substantiate its advocacy with rigorous legal findings.
Second, the firm supported a project focused on German and French case law related to access to justice in environmental disputes. National legal expertise was essential for this task. The resulting case-law overviews became valuable internal resources for EEB’s ongoing policy and litigation-related work.
Throughout the collaboration, the firm engaged over an extended period, providing continuity and responsiveness. For EEB, this long-term engagement was particularly impactful.
As Frederik Hafen, Environmental Democracy Policy Officer at EEB, noted: “Without national legal expertise such research is virtually impossible to carry out and the EEB was especially grateful to have these case-law overviews available for its work.”
Impact: strengthening advocacy and organisational capacity
The pro bono deliverables significantly strengthened EEB’s work on environmental justice. The legal analyses supported policy positions, informed advocacy strategies, and enhanced the credibility of EEB’s interventions at EU level.
Beyond the immediate outputs, the collaboration also helped EEB grow organisationally. It provided insight into how pro bono partnerships function and how NGOs can effectively work with legal experts.
As Frederik Hafen reflected: “Ultimately, this support helped our NGO grow as an organisation, supported our work on fundamental environmental rights, and was delivered by a trusted partner with an open and pragmatic attitude.”
Pro Publico’s role in enabling effective collaboration
Pro Publico played a central role in setting up and sustaining this collaboration. By matching EEB with the right legal partner, Pro Publico ensured that the NGO received targeted, high-quality support aligned with its needs.
The matchmaking also helped demystify pro bono services for EEB, enabling a long-term and productive partnership. This illustrates how pro bono legal support for environmental justice can be maximised through careful alignment and ongoing engagement.
If your organisation is working to defend environmental rights and needs legal expertise, or if your firm is interested in supporting environmental justice through pro bono work, get in touch with Pro Publico.
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