Donate to Advocate

Please support access to justice through Advocate, the Bar’s pro bono charity 

The last page of the practising certificate renewal form presents an opportunity to donate to Advocate (formerly the Bar Pro Bono Unit). We can never be a substitute for legal aid, but through us barristers provide a lifeline for many vulnerable people who desperately need help and would otherwise navigate the court process alone.   

To the extent you can, please consider supporting us. We have experienced a 24% increase in applications for help in the last six months alone and donations received through ATP make up 42% of our funding.  

Below are a couple of examples of people we helped in 2023:

• Assisting a man who is a full-time carer for his father to win his appeal against HMRC in a Capital Gains Tax dispute, preventing him and his father from losing their home and obtaining a Pro Bono Costs Order of over £55,000 for the Access to Justice Foundation.
• Representing an elderly blind and deaf litigant in person in her son’s probate case, enabling her a chance to participate in the court proceedings and preventing her disabilities from stopping her accessing justice. 

We were created by the Bar and we are sustained by the Bar. Please help Advocate work with barristers to provide life-changing support to those in greatest need.   

Thank you.