Overview
Fundación Pro Bono Chile, established in 2000, is the oldest clearinghouse in Latin America. Other important players entities in Chile’s pro bono tradition include law firms, NGOs, and legal clinics. Whilst there is still a lot of work left to be done, this jurisdiction has demonstrated a growing commitment to pro bono in the past few years. Between 2022 and 2023, Chile led the region as the country with the greatest number of new signatories to the Pro Bono Declaration of the Americas (PBDA) — an increase of twenty-four percent.[1] All the Chilean firms that took part in the 2024 pro bono survey organised by Latin Lawyer and the Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice reported they had a pro bono coordinator, and almost three-quarters disclosed that pro bono work is taken into account in associates’ compensation and career progression.
At a glance
| Minimum pro bono hours requirement for lawyers? | Specific pro bono licence required? | May foreign lawyers practice pro bono? | Insurance required for law firm pro bono? | Insurance required for in-house counsel pro bono? | Rules to limit advertising pro bono work? | Does pro bono work count to CLE credit? | Limitations for in-house lawyers to do pro bono? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
Pro bono practice and opportunities
There is limited regulatory oversight of the legal profession in Chile. Joining the Chile Bar Association is optional, but lawyers who are affiliated must observe the Bar’s Professional Ethics Code.[2]
Further, there are no continuing professional development requirements, and professional indemnity insurance is not required.[3]
The licence of abogado (lawyer) is granted by the Corte Suprema (Supreme Court). The requirements to obtain a licence to practice Chilean law include graduating with a Bachelor of Law from a university in Chile and completing the six-month professional placement in a Corporación de Asistencia Judicial (CAJ).[4]
Regulatory landscape for pro bono
There are no overarching laws or rules that specifically regulate the provision of pro bono legal services in Chile. However, lawyers affiliated with the Chilean Bar Association must comply with the Professional Ethics Code.[5]
Article 44 encourages lawyers to participate in pro bono activities, and Article 45 underlines that the same level of professional diligence expected in regular legal services also applies to pro bono work.
Lawyers in Chile do not require any additional licences to provide pro bono legal services beyond the usual local qualification to practice law.
Foreign lawyers must requalify as abogados in order to provide pro bono legal services; otherwise, they are not allowed to appear in court or provide advice on Chilean law.[6]
Please refer to the requirements outlined above in (a)(1).
Lawyers in Chile are not required to work a minimum number of pro bono hours.
As part of the requirements to become a licensed lawyer in Chile, aspiring lawyers must complete a continuous six-month postgraduate professional placement providing free legal advice with the CAJ.[7] Arguably, CAJ does not qualify as pro bono legal work, as it is a mandatory requirement to obtain a law degree and, therefore, lacks the voluntary element that typically characterises pro bono activity.
Although there are no mandatory targets in Chile, signatories of the PBDA are expected to complete 20 hours of pro bono work annually per lawyer. Currently, 20 firms in Chile are signed up to this aspirational pro bono target. Further information regarding the PBDA statement and signatories can be found online.[8]
There are no continuing professional development requirements in Chile[9]. As such, lawyers in Chile do not receive any CLE or equivalent credit for pro bono hours worked.
Insurance and advertising
Lawyers (including in-house lawyers) in Chile do not require professional indemnity legal insurance coverage for any pro bono legal services that they provide.
Article 13 of the Chilean Bar Association’s Professional Ethics Code expressly prohibits soliciting new clients. However, there are several exceptions, including communications in the context of pro bono activities
Pro bono practice and culture
The 2022 Thomas Reuters Foundation Index of Pro Bono identified access to justice, as well as data and digital rights, as the most selected areas of pro bono focus among the Chilean firms surveyed.[10] Ahead of the various referendums on the new Chile constitution held between 2020 and 2023, there was an increase in pro bono activities designed to inform Chileans of the constitutional process and empowering social engagement.[11]
CAJ is a key provider of pro bono assistance in Chile. As a Public Judicial Assistance Corporation, CAJ is a decentralised not-for-profit organisation in the public sector, with the aim of increasing access to free and professional legal advice. The CAJ website includes a list of its centres, along with their respective addresses and contact details.[12]
Several local and international firms based in Chile, as well as some in-house legal departments, collaborate in their own pro bono projects or with the Fundación Pro Bono.
Law schools also often have legal clinics that provide pro bono assistance.
We are not aware of examples of technology or AI as mechanisms for accessing or developing pro bono cases.
Sources of pro bono opportunities and key contacts
Fundación Pro Bono is the main resource for pro bono matters in Chile.[13] This leading clearinghouse for pro bono work has increased access to justice in Chile by connecting lawyers to pro bono programmes since 2000. Fundación Pro Bono also collaborates with other organisations, notably the Chilean Bar Association and the Pro Bono Network of the Americas. This pro bono clearinghouse regularly provides updates via its website, newsletter, and social media channels.
Ayuda Legal Chile offers free handbooks on a range of topics related to pro bono legal work, from the legal obligations that non-profit organisations must comply with to the rights of volunteers during natural disasters.[14] These resources can be accessed at https://ayudalegalchile.cl/rio-de-informacion/.
Additional organisations that are notable sources of pro bono matters or resources in Chile include:
- Observatorio Ciudadano (OC)[15]
- Corporación Humanas — Centro Regional de Derechos Humanos y Justicia de Género[16]
- Corporación de Promoción y Defensa de los Derechos del Pueblo (CODEPU)[17]
- Centro de Salud Mental y Derechos Humanos (CINTRAS)[18]
Fundación Pro Bono Chile serves as a valuable resource for local and foreign lawyers to register and learn about pro bono opportunities. A prospective volunteer can register interest in becoming a member via a short form online.[19]
An individual or legal entity seeking pro bono legal advice can also request assistance online through the Fundación Pro Bono Chile website.[20]
Please also refer to the additional organisations listed in the previous response for further pro bono projects.
Latin Lawyer holds an annual award ceremony to recognise the achievements of practitioners across Latin America, including an award for Pro Bono Law Firm of the Year and Pro Bono Project of the Year.[21]
Latin Lawyer, in collaboration with the Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice, also compiles an annual list of Leading Lights to highlight law firms making a significant contribution to strengthening a culture of pro bono in Latin America. This list, which recognised several firms from Chile, considers a firm’s recognition of their lawyer’s pro bono work, the firm’s pro bono infrastructure, the pro bono work carried out, and support of the country’s pro bono clearinghouse.[22]
Recognition for pro bono work is also awarded and celebrated internally within firms.
References
- https://latinlawyer.com/survey/pro-bono/2024/article/pro-bono-jurisdictional-overview-of-the-results (last accessed 17 January 2025).
- https://colegioabogados.cl/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/LibroCodigo1.pdf (last accessed 6 January 2025).
- https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/international/doing-legal-business-in-chile (last accessed 6 January 2025).
- https://www.ibanet.org/document?id=ITILS-Latin-America-and-Caribbean-2019 (last accessed 6 January 2025).
- https://colegioabogados.cl/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/LibroCodigo1.pdf (last accessed 3 January 2025).
- https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/international/doing-legal-business-in-chile#qualifying-as-a-foreign-lawyer-in-chile (last accessed 3 January 2025).
- https://www.cajmetro.cl/el-mercurio-legal-la-practica-ante-la-caj-es-un-pilar-del-sistema-de-acceso-a-la-justicia-como-tambien-lo-es-para-la-formacion-de-los-futuros-abogados/ (last accessed 30 December 2024).
- https://www.vancecenter.org/our-networks/pro-bono-network-of-the-americas/ (last accessed 30 December 2024).
- https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/international/doing-legal-business-in-chile (last accessed 3 January 2025).
- https://pbi.trust.org/documents/2022/TRF%20INDEX%20Pro%20Bono%202022%20full%20document.pdf?language_id=1 (last accessed 6 January 2025).
- https://www.ibanet.org/article/93966370-6e7e-4fc8-8335-39e876c00768 (last accessed 6 January 2025).
- https://www.cajmetro.cl/servicios/BuscarCentro/ (last accessed 6 January 2025).
- https://probono.cl/ (last accessed 14 February 2025).
- https://ayudalegalchile.cl/ (last accessed 14 February 2025).
- https://observatorio.cl/ (last accessed 14 February 2025).
- https://www.humanas.cl/ (last accessed 14 February 2025).
- https://codepu.cl/wp/ (last accessed 14 February 2025).
- https://www.cintras.org/ (last accessed 14 February 2025).
- https://probono.cl/miembros/ (last accessed 3 January 2025) .
- https://intranet2.probono.cl/nuevo-caso (last accessed 3 January 2025).
- https://latinlawyer.com/news-and-features/latin-lawyer-awards/2024?page=2 (last accessed 30 December 2024).
- https://latinlawyer.com/survey/pro-bono/2024/article/pro-bono-leading-lights?utm_source=Pro%2Bbono%253A%2BLeading%2BLights&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Latin%2BLawyer%2BAlerts (last accessed 30 December 2024).
Acknowledgements
Name of law firm: Barros & Errázuriz
Name of lawyer(s): Martín Vial and Cristóbal Gil
Related resources
TrustLaw Index of Pro Bono
The Thomson Reuters Foundation’s global benchmark report mapping the scale and trends of the pro bono legal sector around the world.
Measuring Pro Bono Impact Guide
A 5-step framework to support legal teams in measuring the impact of their pro bono programmes more effectively, produced by the Thomson Reuters Foundation
Pro Bono Institute Challenge Reports
Providing valuable insights into the pro bono landscape by benchmarking pro bono performance at law firms and in-house legal departments.
Explore the Guide's headline findings
The Guide offers insight and analysis into the global pro bono landscape, beyond the deep-dive country chapters.
