Spanish law firms aren't satisfied to exist within a narrow professional space. Garrigues chairman Antonio Garrigues talks about his firm's ambitious charitable foundation

Our era will be dominated in all aspects by the quickening pace of change, relativity and complexity. This will have a far-reaching impact on both the public realm and citizen behaviour, and the duties and objectives of all levels of society.

The legal class in particular – which includes academia, the courts and the legal profession – will have to ask itself questions as to the nature of its role, the fundamental tasks to be dealt with and wherein lie the challenges that must be overcome. At a time in which the legal domain holds immense sway over society, it is crucial to develop research centres to study and analyse general interest subjects for the good of civil society. In Spain, in particular, civil society is not yet what it should be, meaning that it is much less developed than that of Anglo-Saxon countries. At Garrigues, we are fully committed to help bridge that gap.

The Garrigues Foundation, therefore, is an institution dedicated on one hand to matters of a distinctly legal nature and, on the other, to purely social issues, be they educational or welfare-related.

Founded and entirely funded by Garrigues, the Foundation's aim is to encourage the development of education and culture, particularly in the legal arena, and to serve as a vehicle for other charitable and welfare organisations in a bid to alleviate social inequality. To achieve its aims, Fundacion Garrigues focuses on various areas of activity.

1) Educational and cultural activities

Legal research. The Garrigues Chair in Global Law supports research on the globalisation of the law. Set up with Universidad de Navarra, the chair was created with the aim of promoting teaching and research in the different fields of law and, above all, in all matters with a bearing on the globalisation of the law. This aims to define a global law that is separate from international law, and leading us to the principle of universality, challenging the notion of territoriality which forms the bedrock of international law.

Biomed seminars. The dissemination of new knowledge, especially scientific and technological, is crucial for modern society. People increasingly want and know how to listen and how to learn. Greater knowledge always ends up creating added benefits to the society where it is generated. Research into the ethical and legal repercussions of biomedicine and biotechnology has been carried out in collaboration with Fundacion Sanitas (a member of BUPA) using the 'Biomed Seminars' format. The aim of these seminars is to raise awareness of the recent advances made in the field of biomedical research, such as cell therapy and regenerative medicine, in a rigorous manner. The 'Biomed Seminars' (staged in Garrigues' auditorium) are gatherings at which a multidisciplinary approach is taken by various speakers to debating biomedical topics from a scientific, business, legal and ethical standpoint. At these gatherings, the guest experts are expected to offer views and opinions from a range of perspectives, in a practical way that invites audience participation and is far removed from traditional, purely academic analysis. The conclusions reached in these seminars are then written up in booklets that are distributed free of charge. The latest seminars were on the new Spanish Biomedical Research, Nanotechnology and Nanoscience and Therapeutic Cloning and its legal and ethical implications.

The Young Lawyers Awards were set up eight years ago as a means to encourage excellence among young law graduates in the study of business law and the skilful application of their knowledge. There are two categories, one for final-year law students and another aimed at young legal practitioners.

Scholarships programme. As part of its cultural activities, the Foundation has decided to focus mainly on the world of academia and university teaching. Scholarships are awarded targeting the world of higher education and, specifically, the field of law. The aim of these scholarships is to motivate young students approaching the end of their studies.

2) Pro bono work

Given that the firm's main business is the provision of tax and legal services, the Foundation's board of trustees decided to set up a pro bono committee in order to centralise all work of this nature. This committee is tasked with deciding on which pro bono engagements to accept and assigns to each project the professional resources of Garrigues required to meet the needs of each particular case. Among its pro bono commitments, the Garrigues Foundation took part in 2008, and will continue to do so in 2009, in a working group set up by the Cyrus R Vance Centre for International Justice. Forming part of the New York Bar Association, this body was founded on the principle that lawyers have a pivotal role to play in the promotion of social justice and the strengthening of democracy.

The Centre provides support worldwide to lawyers who engage in pro bono activities, be they related to broadening access to justice, ensuring a fair and equitable legal system or boosting public confidence in the legal profession.

The working group set up by the Centre brings together Spain's leading law firms and works in close collaboration with the Madrid Bar Association's Centre for Social Responsibility in the Legal Profession, whose representative was also invited to attend the group's meetings. Its aim is to arrive at a standard definition of pro bono work, and to compile the best practices of each firm in this area, with a view to drafting a public document that can guide smaller law firms and practitioners.

As practical examples of the pro bono work carried out by the Garrigues Foundation, I would like to mention two projects that have turned out to be particularly successful.

Collaboration with CEDDET. One facet of the work of The Garrigues Foundation consists of research and development on issues with a bearing on the information society. To this end, the Foundation is working on a project for online virtual training. The project involves the development of an accounting training course for Latin American judges, delivered entirely online in collaboration with CEDDET (The Centre for Distance Learning for Economic and Technological Development), a foundation promoted by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Finance and which serves as the affiliate of the World Bank's Global Development Learning Network in Spain.

The aim of CEDDET is to share with other countries – with a particular emphasis on Latin America – the experience and knowhow acquired by the public authorities, and enterprises in Spain, making use of the latest information technologies and telecommunications in order to strengthen institutions, create favourable conditions for investment in the region and set up international networks of experts, particularly in Latin America.

Under the agreement signed with CEDDET in 2007, May and June 2008 saw The Garrigues Foundation prepare and deliver a course for judges on 'The Fundaments of Economics and Accounting'. The Garrigues Foundation' contribution to the project, in which the General Council of the Spanish Judiciary also took part, consisted of managing the academic side of the course, preparing the syllabus and materials and providing the teaching staff.

The results were excellent, with 31 judges from eight Latin American countries taking part (Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay and Peru). We are now about to finish the second edition of the course.

Collaboration with FUNDETEC. The Foundation's collaboration with FUNDETEC (Foundation for the IT and Technological Development of Enterprises and Society) has also continued to develop as part of its initiatives in relation to the information society and reaching out to marginalised groups, since the agreement was signed two years ago.

The fruit of a joint public and private sector initiative, FUNDETEC was founded in October 2004 with a view to creating a stable, collaborative not-for-profit framework open to any entity looking to further the development of the information society in Spain. The ultimate aim pursued is nothing less than to bridge the digital divide, which not only separates Spain from the most advanced countries in the European Union, but also separates different social groups and regions within Spain itself.

Among FUNDETEC's activities, the Internet Connected Homes (ICH) initiative has the goal of increasing the level of penetration of IT in households by using enterprises as middlemen to facilitate the drive towards this goal, and offering certain tax breaks as an incentive for them to take part. The role of The Garrigues Foundation focuses on technical, tax and legal assistance provided by the firm's partners and associates in order achieve a more widespread implementation of the ICH project throughout Spain.

We firmly believe that foundations today are strategically placed to lead a positive change in a globalised civil society. They can help change attitudes, generate a consensus in vital matters and increase the degree of civic responsibility. They can – and they must. And I am convinced they will.

Antonio Garrigues is chairman of Garrigues.