: being, involving, or doing professional and especially legal work donated especially for the public good
pro bono work
pro bono adverb

Did you know?

In Latin, pro bono publico means "for the public good;" in English we generally shorten the phrase to pro bono. Donating free legal help to those who need it has long been a practice of American law firms; the American Bar Association actually recommends that all lawyers donate 50 hours a year. Pro bono work is sometimes donated by nonlegal firms as well. For example, an advertising firm might produce a 60-second video for an environmental or educational organization, or a strategic-planning firm might prepare a start-up plan for a charity that funds shelters for battered women.

Examples of pro bono in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Big Law: At the start of an extraordinary campaign against private practice law firms, Trump revoked the security clearances of lawyers at Covington & Burling who offered pro bono legal advice to former special counsel Jack Smith. Zachary Basu, Axios, 21 Mar. 2025 Gottfried, a pro bono specialist at a law firm, defeated Republican candidate Paul Wikstrom, an engineer manager and instructor pilot, for Minnesota House seat 40B, which includes portions of Shoreview and Roseville. Caroline Vakil, The Hill, 12 Mar. 2025 The president late last month signed a memo suspending security clearances at the law firm Covington & Burling, which provided pro bono legal services to former special counsel Jack Smith in his personal capacity. Brett Samuels, The Hill, 6 Mar. 2025 While some experts choose to do pro bono work for strategic reasons—such as speaking at a high-visibility industry event—this should be the exception, not the expectation. Dr. Diane Hamilton, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for pro bono

Word History

Etymology

Latin pro bono publico for the public good

First Known Use

1966, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of pro bono was in 1966

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Cite this Entry

“Pro bono.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pro%20bono. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.

Legal Definition

pro bono

adverb or adjective
ˌprō-ˈbō-nō
: being, involving, or doing legal work donated especially for the public good
Etymology

Latin pro bono publico for the public good

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