Hunton & Williams LLP Honored as 2008 Law Firm of the Year by Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta

Firm donates more than 485 hours to local nonprofits

Atlanta — February 4, 2009 — Attorneys from Hunton & Williams LLP donated more than 485 hours of pro bono service to Atlanta nonprofits in 2008 and were honored with "The 2008 Law Firm of the Year Award" from the Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta. Hunton & Williams received the award for handling the most legal matters referred by the PBPA in the past year, including assisting nonprofits with reviewing contracts, registering trademarks, drafting bylaws and updating HR policies.

Approximately 20 Hunton & Williams attorneys, including seven partners, collectively handled 15 PBPA pro bono matters in 2008. Hunton & Williams also presented workshops on labor and employment topics for local nonprofit organizations, including an overview of federal discrimination laws and strategies for proper documentation and interviewing employees.

Rita Sheffey, partner and chair of Hunton and Williams' Atlanta Pro Bono Committee, said, "This is a special honor for us. It's rewarding to be recognized for our firm’s strong commitment to pro bono service and making a difference in our communities. We are particularly grateful to Rachel Spears and the PBPA for increasing opportunities for transactional lawyers to provide valuable pro bono legal services for metro Atlanta nonprofits. They do a wonderful job of screening new clients and clarifying the client's legal needs. It is a joy to work with them and with the nonprofit clients."

Kurt Powell, managing partner of Hunton & Williams' Atlanta office, said, "We’re very proud of this honor and commend all of our attorneys for their pro bono service that positively impacts metro Atlanta."

The Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta matches lawyers from Atlanta's leading corporations and law firms with local nonprofits in need of free legal counsel. The partnership serves community-based nonprofits that operate programs or activities that benefit low-income or disadvantaged individuals in metropolitan Atlanta.

Since it opened its doors three and a half years ago, the Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta has assigned and supported over 750 volunteer transactional lawyers in assisting more than 330 nonprofit clients on nearly 900 legal matters. With support from leading corporations and law firms in the Atlanta area, the Pro Bono Partnership plans to continue to grow and provide new resources to help local nonprofits with their legal needs.

Hunton & Williams is committed to serving its communities through a strong pro bono practice in each of its offices. In Atlanta, Hunton & Williams attorneys already have volunteered more than 5,500 hours during the firm's current fiscal year, which runs from April 2008 through March 2009. Among other things, the firm provides ongoing pro bono services to Fulton County Juvenile Court through serving as guardians ad litem in cases involving unruly youth or status offenders, as well as in matters in which youth are adjudged mentally incompetent to understand the charges against them.

The cornerstone pro bono effort of the Atlanta office is the Southside Legal Center, which opened in 1995 to serve area residents whose incomes are too large to make them eligible for Legal Aid, but too small to hire a private attorney. The center provides legal assistance with such issues as adoptions, business law matters for nonprofits, uncontested divorces, and private landlord-tenant disputes.

In addition, the firm has established the Hunton & Williams Pro Bono Fellowship in response to federal budget cuts and other reductions in funds for Legal Aid services. During the two-year fellowship, the fellow’s time is entirely committed to pro bono work. The firm is currently accepting applications for its fifth Atlanta fellowship to begin in the fall of 2009.

About Hunton & Williams LLP

Hunton & Williams LLP provides legal services to corporations, financial institutions, governments and individuals, as well as to a broad array of other entities. Since our establishment more than a century ago, Hunton & Williams has grown to more than 1,000 attorneys serving clients in 100 countries from 19 offices around the world. While our practice has a strong industry focus on energy, financial services and life sciences, the depth and breadth of our experience extends to more than 100 separate practice areas, including bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, commercial litigation, corporate transactions and securities law, intellectual property, international and government relations, regulatory law, products liability, and privacy and information management.

About the Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta

The Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta, Inc. is a tax-exempt public charity whose mission is to make it as easy and enjoyable as possible for transactional lawyers at corporations and law firms to provide valuable pro bono services for nonprofit agencies serving the public interest in Metropolitan Atlanta. The Partnership serves community-based nonprofits that operate programs or activities that benefit low-income or disadvantaged individuals in metropolitan Atlanta. To qualify, the nonprofit agency must be unable to pay for legal services without significant impairment of program resources.