The Bar Council and the Law Society are set to draw up a pro bono panel of law firms to offer legal services at the 2012 Olympic Games.

The tender process will kick off in January 2011, when the two representative bodies will issue open invitations to pitch.

Bar Council chairman Nicholas Green QC said: "There will be no restrictions on who can apply, but we will be looking for firms, sets of chambers and individuals with experience in sports law and issues such as doping."

Pro bono legal advice will be available several weeks before the start of the Olympics until the end of the games, with between five and 10 firms expected to be appointed to the panel.

"We will seek quality over quantity," said Green. "However, when an issue does arise it can generate a lot of very intensive work – for example, when a gold medal winner is accused of cheating and risks being stripped of the medal."

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is expected to be one of the firms on the panel after being appointed as the official law firm to the Olympics last February by the London Organising Committee.

London office head Tim Jones and head of communications Anna Mitchell are overseeing the project, with between 10 and 15 partners and associates already carrying out work relating to the Olympics in London.

Corporate partner Simon Weller is handling the distribution of work, while dispute resolution partner Raj Parker is playing a hands-on role in drafting anti-doping regulations.