UK pro bono work

Below, we list a selection of outstanding examples of the UK team’s pro bono efforts on a wide range of very worthy causes. In 2024, eight of our lawyers were recognised for their pro bono commitment in the 'Pro Bono Recognition List, an initiative supported by the Law Society, the Bar Council and all major pro bono organisations, under the patronage of The Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales.

Supreme Court intervention by NGO in crucial anti-sewage dumping challenge

The Environmental Law Foundation (ELF) represented by Hausfeld, intervened in major environmental law proceedings in the Supreme Court between United Utilities, a water company operating in the Northwest of England and the Manchester Shipping Canal (MSCCL) on 6-7 March 2023. We intervened in support of the legal arguments made by appellant MSCCL. In a landmark decision for environmental campaigners, the Supreme Court unanimously allowed MSCCL’s appeal and ruled that owners of watercourses can bring private law claims against sewage undertakers arising from sewage dumping, even if there has been no negligence or deliberate wrongdoing. Making water companies more directly accountable to a wider group of landowners and water users will force water companies to re-examine their conduct around sewage releases.

Greenwashing claim against clothing giant Lululemon

Environmental advocacy organisation Stand.earth, filed a first-of-its-kind complaint in France against the fashion retailer Lululemon for greenwashing its products. Filed with the French Directorate General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF) on 24 July 2024, the complaint seeks a rescission of Lululemon’s ‘Be Planet’ advertising campaign.

Legal action against BP alleging that its excessive gas flaring caused death of young Iraqi

An Iraqi national, Hussein Julood sent a Letter Before Action to BP on 22 April 2024, seeking damages for the death of his son, who he claims died from cancer caused by the oil giant’s gas flaring. This is the first time that a fossil fuel corporation has been faced with a lawsuit in the UK relating to flaring overseas.

Save the Children intervention in climate change case before ECtHR

Save the Children, represented by Hausfeld, officially intervened in a ground-breaking climate change case before the European Court of Human Rights as a third-party in May 2021. This intervention, from an organisation that is a leading global voice for children, was a valuable resource for the Court.

Privacy International

Hausfeld has acted for Privacy International (PI), a global NGO that supports the right to privacy, dignity and freedom. We worked together on various aspects of PI’s competition-focused work as the interplay between data, privacy and antitrust issues continues to grow.

In 2020, we were instructed in relation to the European Commission (EC)’s review of Google’s proposed acquisition of Fitbit, Inc. We assisted PI in submitting comments on the deal to the Commission given the significant impact the takeover would have on competition, consumers and wider society.
In 2022, we were instructed in relation to PI's intervention in appeal proceedings before the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal concerning the decision by the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) that Meta should divest itself of GIPHY, another high-profile case in which PI argued - in support of the CMA’s decision - that the merger could result in Facebook using GIPHY to further expand, and potentially abuse, its dominance in the social media and messaging, as well as digital advertising markets at the expense of consumers and competitors.
In June 2023, we supported PI in obtaining interested third party status by the EC and had the right to be heard as part of the EC merger procedure concerning Amazon’s proposed acquisition of iRobot, a US company that designs and builds consumer robots and autonomous ‘smart home’ devices, such as vacuum cleaners and floor moppers which use AI, online/ offline user interactions and data gathered through sensors. PI’s analysis indicated the merger would threaten competition in several markets and more generally, reduce what little pressure there was on Amazon to compete in relation to privacy options available to consumers, leading to even less competition on privacy standards and thereby enabling the further degradation of consumers’ privacy protections.

#PeriodPoverty

Our collaboration with Free Periods and Red Box to eliminate #PeriodPoverty in England – which has its own case study elsewhere in this section - was shortlisted in the “Access to Justice” category in the 2019 Law Society’s Excellence Awards.

Ex-police officer Andrea Brown

We acted for ex-police officer, Andrea Brown, in her Court of Appeal case against the police concerning the qualified one-way costs shifting rules. Andrea originally brought a claim against the police force in the County Court for breach of data protection, breach of the Human Rights Act 1998, misfeasance in public office and misuse of private information. The case was widely reported by the press. She was successful in three of the four heads of claim, but not on the personal injury element. The County Court held that Andrea was entitled to protection under QOCS as the personal injury claims were directly linked to the non-personal injury claim, and it did not consider that the exception had been triggered. This was appealed and unfortunately, the Court of Appeal found against Andrea.

Avaaz

We advised and assisted the global advocacy not-for-profit organisation, Avaaz, in a challenge to NewsCorp’s bid to merge with BSkyB, on the basis that a 60% controlling interest by NewsCorp would have serious impact on media pluralism in the United Kingdom.

British Disabled Flying Association

We acted for the BDFA (Aerobility), who teach disabled and chronically ill people to fly. Aerobility sought VAT exemption or to be zero-rated for VAT for the purposes of purchasing and maintaining their aircraft. Following hearings before both the First Tier Tax Tribunal and the Upper Tribunal, we sought to have the HMRC’s decision judicial reviewed. This application was granted and the case concluded shortly before that judicial review hearing. Case study.

Accountability of multi-national corporations

We worked with the former UN Special Rapporteur on "Business and Human Rights" Professor John Ruggie, on the development on the United Nations Guiding principles (UNGP’s) which are internationally recognised standards of conduct for multi- national corporations. These were later implemented in many countries including the UK as National Action Plans (NAP’s). Our efforts focussed on the redress pillar toward making global companies accountable to those whose lives are impacted by rights violations in global supply chains in host countries, in particular where extractive, deforestation and garment industries are based. The UNGP’s now form the basis for building on principles of duty of care in the context of corporate climate accountability, and as active members of the climate change expert group at the British Institute of advanced and comparative law we are working to further expand corporate accountability in this area.