Critical investigation by banks and global US corporates of their law firms’ prowess in CSR and pro bono work is seen as the key driver for such investment.

Action, as the cliché goes, beats all the good words on the planet, so take note of the following. ‘For the first time, a large law firm is attempting to use its resources in an organised fashion to find a way to provide access to justice for poor people, but on an ongoing basis.’ So states this head of a dedicated pro bono office. ‘In other words, it’s not simply taking on "test cases", but placing itself in the centre of the community it serves and immersing itself in the community’s problems.’ So says Lourens Ackermann. His dedicated pro bono office borders two townships outside Cape Town in South Africa. It’s fully owned by one of the country’s fastest growing commercial law firms, Sonnenberg Hoffmann Galombik. The office was founded by this year’s Lawyer of the Year, Taswell Papier. His achievements against the odds are not unique, but are worth hearing about as the commercial legal community here in the UK begins to face up to its own social responsibilities.

For Europeans of this generation, there wasn’t much South Africa could teach us about social responsibility; far from it. Today, I’m not so sure.

Tom Freeman, editor