RLS-Athens shortlisted for the LexisNexis Pro Bono Award 2018
We are delighted to announce that Refugee Legal Support - Athens has been shortlisted for the LexisNexis Legal Awards 2018 in the Pro Bono category. The winners will be announced on 15 March 2018.
RLS is a legal organisation run by UK pro bono lawyers, currently operating in Athens, Greece. RLS-Athens was set up in April 2017 by volunteer UK asylum lawyers who spent time volunteering in Greece in response to the 'refugee crisis' and witnessed the acute need for legal advice and the dire consequences caused by its absence. RLS believes that everyone should have effective access to legal assistance to advocate for themselves.
The project’s main priorities are:
- Offering free legal assistance to refugees in and around Athens
- Building capacity through information and knowledge-sharing with Greek lawyers, NGOs and through information workshops delivered directly to refugee communities
- Supporting refugees to acquire transferable skills as interpreters and to work as paid interpreters within the project, contributing to the integration of refugees in the local community
Since April 2017, 50 UK-based lawyers have volunteered their time and self-funded trips to Athens to provide free legal support to refugees. Together they have donated over 2000 hours providing legal assistance to more than 400 refugees in and around Athens, including the submission of over 100 family reunification applications.
None of this would have been possible without the overwhelming support of immigration lawyers across the UK, the project coordinators, legal support volunteers and our colleagues in Greece as well as the generous backing of our supporters.
RLS-Athens is honoured to be shortlisted in the Pro Bono category alongside Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, the Duncan Lewis Pro Bono Committee, John Cooper QC and The AIRE Centre.
The full list of finalists can be found on the LexisNexis website.
Find out more about RLS-Athens and how you can help.
