Simmons & Simmons’ Access to Justice programme has reached the £1 million milestone on its social welfare work in representing clients in their appeals against Personal Independence Payments decisions.
Since the inception of the firm’s Access to Justice programme in 2015, senior pro bono lawyer Diane Sechi has been advising clients on their appeals from end to end, with support from lawyers across the Simmons network and in house teams from a range of clients.
Diane is one of the only social welfare lawyers working in a City firm, which is a primary reason for the success of the access to justice programme at Simmons. Thanks to Diane, the firm is able to encourage strong engagement from across the firm and its network of clients who are keen to contribute to social justice across the UK.
During Diane’s tenure, the firm has seen a 98% success rate for its social welfare cases, and the positive outcome of these appeal hearings means that 320 people have received backdated payments, providing them with essential financial support.
Commenting on this milestone for the firm’s access to justice programme, Diane Sechi said: “This is a significant moment for Simmons’ social justice work, demonstrating just what a tangible impact we are able to have on the cases we work- often for very vulnerable people. It’s also a testament to the fantastic engagement we get from lawyers across the firm- as well as clients- on our pro bono work.”
Adding to Diane’s comments, former senior partner Colin Passmore said: “During my time at Simmons I have seen the social justice work that the firm does make significant progress for clients wanting to appeal their benefits decisions. Access to Justice programmes like ours are essential to protecting individuals in a bureaucratic system which requires legal advice to make compelling appeals. We are lucky at Simmons to have a social welfare lawyer like Diane to work tirelessly for people up and down the country, albeit in light of our pressing concern that so many appeals continue to need to be brought: I fear we will need Diane’s services in this area for some time to come.”