(Image: Sam Ward)

The most recent class of law school graduates performed 4.38 million hours of pro bono work as students, according to new data from the Association of American Law Schools.

That free legal work is valued at more $111 million, using the hourly rate of $25.43 established by nonprofit organization Independent Sector. It's the highest number of pro bono hours recorded by AALS in the four years since the group began tracking the amount of free legal services law students perform.

Law students who graduated in 2016 recorded more than 2.2 million pro bono hours, valued at $52 million. That number swelled to more than 3.48 million hours for the law class of 2018, and the 2019 figure represents a more than 25% increase in the total number of pro bono hours graduates completed over the previous year.

But much of the increase was due to higher law school participation in the survey, noted AALS communications director James Greif. Some 105 law schools submitted pro bono figures for 2019, compared with just 80 in 2016. That means more than half of law schools accredited by the American Bar Association participated in the survey this year, but the actual number of pro bono hours is likely much higher due to the schools that did not submit figures.

"The averages have been going up slightly, but the real increase has been because we have more participants than in prior years," Greif said. "Schools have seen the survey—they know it's coming. We've done additional outreach. That's really what's contributing to the increased numbers, though we have seen a steady climb in the average number of pro bono hours, though slight."

On average, 2019 graduates performed 221 hours of pro bono work as students, up from 211 from the class of 2018. That includes work done in a formal clinic setting, work performed in externships at nonprofit organizations, and purely volunteer work.

"Access to justice is a cornerstone of legal education and the legal profession," said Darby Dickerson, incoming AALS president and dean at the University of Illinois at Chicago John Marshall Law School. "The pro bono opportunities represented in this project provide valuable and unique experiences for students as they prepare for their careers while helping to meet the legal needs in often-underserved communities across the country. The AALS applauds these graduates for their dedication to serving those in need."