During the COVID crisis Clayton Utz has stepped up to provide unique pro bono support to Women’s Legal Service Queensland (WLSQ) who each year provides over 30,000 services to women experiencing domestic and family violence.
WLSQ’s State-wide Helpline has experienced an unprecedented 47% increase in calls across recent months, as the service strives to cope with unprecedented demand from women experiencing domestic violence, many of whom have been isolated in unsafe homes.
As part of a long-term partnership, Clayton Utz have recently assisted the Service in a diverse range of areas including with governance, strategic advice and document preparation.
The firm’s Document Preparation and Clients and Markets (Design) Teams, while working from home, supported the development of legal education resources which will help to explain complex legal processes to women experiencing domestic violence.
Clayton Utz has also helped to raise much needed funds for the Service, collecting quality preloved designer women’s clothing and accessories to be sold at WLSQ’s Designer Rummage Sale event scheduled for March 2021.
WLSQ Angela Lynch says Clayton Utz’s ability to think and act laterally has had tangible benefits for the frontline service assisting women experiencing domestic violence.
“We’re so incredibly appreciative for everything they do. The help provided means we’re able to get on and deliver more of our core service. Our lawyers are freed to assist more women and their children experiencing domestic violence.”
“The business expertise of law firms means they have resources and skills to share beyond traditional pro bono legal advice. The diverse help that Clayton Utz mobilised during COVID is having such a positive impact on the lives of the women and children we help.”
Information on WLSQ’s Designer Rummage Sale event can be found here: https://designerrummage.com/