Stuttgart – CMS Germany has become the first major German law firm to establish a non-profit foundation with the aim of making expert legal advice and representation available to people in need. Despite the existence of legal aid, certain social groups often have no access to legal support, with the result that they do not get the justice to which they are entitled. Examples include disadvantaged families and single mothers with small children, people with disabilities, migrants unfamiliar with our complex legal system, adolescent victims of sexual abuse, and victims of human trafficking and forced prostitution on the very margins of society. Lack of legal support makes it more difficult for them to escape their plight. The CMS Foundation aims to make a meaningful contribution towards meeting this specific societal need.
“Following detailed preparations, we are delighted to launch the CMS Foundation. The Foundation is a logical extension of our comprehensive pro bono programme, which will be retained and continue to see us leveraging our experience to provide free advice to charitable organisations,” said Dr Hubertus Kolster, Managing Partner of CMS Germany. People in need often require highly specialised legal advice outside the field of commercial law, and the CMS Foundation will provide access to legal services that go beyond the existing provision, he added.
To this end, the Foundation will work together with specialist non-profit organisations. These project partners are best placed to identify specific needs at local level. The Foundation will support their work by way of financial grants and assist with additional training for employees of advisory agencies and lawyers, and in special cases also for police detectives, judges and public prosecutors. The project partners include Dunkelziffer e.V., Allerleihrauh e.V. and Arrival Aid. The CMS Foundation will also support unpaid legal advice provided to the
needy, in particular through university law clinics and other student initiatives for delivering
legal advice on a volunteer basis.
“We can’t make the world a better place, but we can make it more just,” said Dr Axel Sigle, partner and a member of the management board of the CMS Foundation. “Everyone, regardless of their origin, education and social status, should be able to rely on our legal system. People have rights, and through the Foundation and working in partnership with selected charitable organisations we are helping them to access those rights.”
Dr Gerlind Wisskirchen, also a partner and member of the management board of the CMS Foundation: “The CMS Foundation delivers help where it is most urgently needed. It facilitates expert legal advice and representation in cases where people are vitally dependent on receiving such advice or representation. Specifically, we fund initial consultations and follow-up advice, for example. We also provide support for dealing with public authorities, out-of-court representation in civil and administrative law matters and, in exceptional circumstances, in-court representation.”
CMS Foundation, the facts:
Legal form
The CMS Foundation takes the legal form of a charitable limited company. It has been recognised by the Stuttgart Tax Office as having charitable status. The CMS Foundation funds its work by way of annual donations from law firm CMS Hasche Sigle.
Management
A management board elected by the members' meeting and consisting of three partners from
law firm CMS Hasche Sigle decides on all matters relating to the Foundation.
The members of the management board are
Dr Fritz von Hammerstein, Hamburg
Dr Axel Sigle, Stuttgart
Dr Gerlind Wisskirchen, Cologne
Board of trustees
The CMS Foundation may set up a board of trustees for the purpose of drawing on the experience of external specialists or project partners to support its work. The members'meeting decides on the establishment and structure of the board of trustees and the appointment of its members. Organisations that would like to find out more about the funding criteria and are interested in working with the CMS Foundation should contact cms-stiftung@cms-hs.com or Gabriele Gröninger, T: 040 37630-318. A personal discussion is requested before any application for funding is submitted.
Further information on CMS Germany's corporate social responsibility commitment is available here: https://cms.law/en/DEU/About-Us/Corporate-Social-Responsibility
Press Contact
presse@cms-hs.com
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