Family barrister Maria Scotland wins Bar Pro Bono Award

Family barrister, Maria Scotland, of 7 Bedford Row Chambers, has been named the winner of the 14th Annual Sydney Elland Goldsmith Bar Pro Bono Award, to be presented at the 25th Annual Bar Conference on Saturday 6 November by the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson.

The Bar Pro Bono Award is given to an individual barrister or set of chambers in recognition of outstanding commitment to pro bono work.

Aside from being a very busy practitioner, Maria has taken on a vast amount of pro bono cases; 12 cases in the past 12 months alone. The work on these cases has ranged from written advice to attendance in court whilst Maria also regularly reviews cases for the Bar Pro Bono Unit.

Rebecca Wilkie, Chief Executive of the Bar Pro Bono Unit said: "We were overwhelmed by the quality of entries we received this year. It was a very close call, but the judging panel felt that Maria's contribution stood out this year.

"We are excited, once again, to have the opportunity to recognise the superb contribution which the Bar makes to pro bono, across all practice areas. This reiterates the commitment of the profession to continuing to undertake pro bono work, despite the tough financial context that it is operating within.

"It is the perfect time to celebrate the Bar's pro bono effort, as we look forward to National Pro Bono Week, which gets underway on Monday".