Paul Chaplin

Over the past six months, 30 volunteer partners and lawyers from offices in London, Manchester, Leeds, Edinburgh and Glasgow have acted for British Armed Forces veterans and serving personnel at more than 65 in-person and remote War Pensions Appeal Tribunal hearings in Leeds, Manchester and London, winning the vast majority of those appeals.

These tribunals hear appeals brought by individuals who are appealing their entitlement to an award or the levels of award that they have received relating to injury or disablement sustained whilst in service.

Addleshaw Goddard programme founder, partner Paul Chaplin, said: “Getting the programme up and running to provide advice and assistance to those serving and ex-serving armed forces personnel most in need of legal help has been exciting and rewarding, and it has been fantastic to see so many of our partnership and lawyers swiftly coming forward to volunteer their time and expertise.

“In addition to being an excellent way to give back to the communities in which we live and work, pro bono initiatives are also a superb opportunity to develop our legal and advocacy skills. The team have been on a learning curve in the past few months with training sessions rolled out across our UK offices and a packed schedule of tribunal hearings, which we’re delighted to say have resulted in positive outcomes for the vast majority of people we have represented so far.”

Sam Mudd, Royal British Legion, added: “The Royal British Legion is here to provide lifelong support to serving and ex-serving personnel and their families. War Pensions Appeal Tribunal representation is a free service offered by the RBL and we are working hard to support some of the most vulnerable members of the Armed Forces community who have served and sacrificed on our behalf. There continues to be significant demand for Tribunal representation. As a result, the RBL really appreciate the support that Addleshaw Goddard have given us which utilises their particular skills and professional qualifications to assist our serving and ex-serving personnel.”