NLS Legal are the winners of the ALM 2025 Leadership, Influence & Inclusivity in Law Justice Beyond the Courtroom Award
By Emma Groman | Published on 17 December 2025
According to ALM, “these awards honour individuals and teams across the legal profession who are driving meaningful change—whether through visionary leadership, inclusive culture-building, groundbreaking client work, or community-focused initiatives.”
NLS Legal is the only firm of its kind in the UK, founded to inspire, support and combat inequality.
The “teaching law firm” enables NLS Legal to provide a fully pro bono service to those who would otherwise be unable to afford or access legal services, whilst providing Nottingham Law School (NLS) students at NTU, with real-world work experience allowing them to develop their confidence and practical skills in a supportive and inclusive environment.
“We are proud to put access to justice, underserved communities and an innovative approach to legal education at the heart of everything we do.” (Laura Pinkney, Head of NLS Legal).
With a team of 12 full time members of staff, the firm, with the support of student volunteers and wider university, help hundreds of clients each year, often the most marginalised in our society.
They achieve life-changing outcomes for those that would otherwise have to go without legal representation such as preventing homelessness, obtaining vital education provisions for children with special educational needs and disabilities, supporting survivors of domestic violence, ensuring access to vital welfare benefits, helping establish and save businesses and protecting the rights of employees. Since their launch 10 years ago, they have dealt with over 3,400 cases and worked with over 5,500 students. As stated by a recent client:
“I think programmes like this are so helpful for both ends. The students can learn directly through practice and people who can't afford this service can get the help they need.”
Notable recent achievements include:
- Surpassing the £7 million milestone in terms of financial awards secured for their clients.
- Handling over 300 cases and supporting an additional 120 individuals and organisations via public legal education seminars.
- Expanding the community outreach offer: they now deliver in-person advice at five different community-based locations across Nottinghamshire.
- Providing over 700 law students with practical experience.
- All of their solicitors feature in the Attorney General’s Pro Bono Recognition List 2025.
NLS Legal is committed to inclusivity and diversity by removing barriers to provide work experience to under-represented groups in the legal profession. Recent data shows that 50% of student volunteers were from minoritised ethnic groups, 42% were from low socio-economic backgrounds, and 19% declared a disability. In June 2025, they provided nine students on NTU’s Black Leadership Programme with funded internships.
It was a truly enriching experience. I particularly appreciated the balance between hands-on casework and broader contributions like the public legal education project; we left feeling both inspired and better equipped for the next stages of our legal careers.
Black Leadership Programme Internship participant
“As we celebrate 10 years dedicated to access to justice and innovative legal education, this award is a powerful recognition of our team, who work tirelessly to achieve transformational change for our clients, students and the wider community.” (Laura Pinkney, Head of NLS Legal).