qLegal continues to thrive thanks to the individuals who volunteer their time to help support the next generation of lawyers and start-ups. International Women’s Day is a chance to celebrate the specific contribution of the women who volunteer and collaborate with qLegal.
This year, over 300 postgraduate law students and solicitors from leading law firms and in-house teams are supporting the pro bono law clinic, making it possible to deliver the free service.
“Pro Bono” refers to the provision of legal services on a free basis, for the public good. Early stage start-ups often can’t afford to pay for legal advice, and so far this year, 64% of the enquiries qLegal received were from start-ups who had not received any funding for their business. In the UK, around 75% of small businesses don’t seek professional advice when a legal problem arises, as they view the legal system as unaffordable. Pro bono clinics, like qLegal, help to address this unmet need within the start-up community.
qLegal has seen an increase in women founders enquiring about the pro bono legal services in recent years. Women entrepreneurs play an important part in the start-up ecosystem and created a record number (over 150,000) of new start-ups in the UK last year. qLegal is proud to support these entrepreneurs across their programmes. This year, 51% of the start-ups participating in qLegal’s Externship Programme (where students spend one day a week for six months supporting a start-up), have at least one woman founder.
Women law students and lawyers also make a significant contribution to the start-up community. Currently, 62% of qLegal Extern students are women and qLegal worked with over 150 women lawyers across their other programmes during 2021-23.
qLegal would like to thank all the volunteers who help make the pro bono service possible, and to celebrate the specific contribution of the women volunteers and entrepreneurs who collaborate with qLegal.