Pro bono

At Haftom Kesete and Associates Law Office (HLO), we strongly believe that lawyers have a special responsibility to contribute to their society and their communities by providing pro bono legal services to underserved members of society. We are also cognizant of the service requirement, to hold up to three cases annually, in recognition of the justice gap for those who cannot afford lawyers.

While our associates frequently find themselves assisting our fellow citizens without means in individual matters, we have also extended our assistance to serve governmental and non-governmental organizations.

A few of the recent activities we have undertaken include;

The cases of hundreds of prisoners since the conflict erupted in Tigray in November 2020. HLO, as a coordinator, and associate member of the Defense Team has been giving for hundreds of prisoners arrested in connection with the conflict and accused in the charge of disrupting constitutional order and terrorism.

Assistance to the World Bank Group by conducting legal research on enabling the Business of Agriculture - Contract Farming and Farmers' Organizations in Ethiopia. Concerning the latter, our associates responded to a legal questionnaire that aimed to capture legal integration policies on contract farming in Ethiopia, especially the nature and prevalence of alternative dispute resolution processes to resolve agricultural contractual disputes, and the legal framework applicable to agricultural production contracts.