Corporate responsibility

Since our foundation in 1992, we have been working with people and society at heart. We started with the ambition to serve (perhaps even improve) the world as lawyers. In doing so, we never lose sight of the human dimension and social impact in everything we do. Over the years, our DNA has stayed the same, but the world around us has not. This calls for a permanent self-reflective and broad view of ourselves and our surroundings. Our ESG policy is in line with the ten principles of the United Nations, which are known worldwide and widely supported as a policy framework.

We value, support and promote diversity and inclusion. Everyone deserves to feel valued and respected. We stand for an open and honest culture and an atmosphere in which people - regardless of their position - are free to speak up and give feedback.

Therefore, we promise:

• To create an inclusive and safe environment for everyone at all levels. Everyone must have equal opportunities to be themselves. It is our esponsibility to establish and develop processes and policies that provide fair pay for all our employees. This goal also means fair representation at all levels in our organisation.
• To raise awareness and stimulate inclusive behaviour and collaboration as part of our culture.

We believe in the power of knowledge sharing. We are involved in non-profit organizations such as JINC, which helps young people from disadvantaged backgrounds gain a good starting position in the labour market. We are also a structural partner of the National Think Tank Foundation. With our legal knowledge and expertise we support the participants in the National Think Tank in coming up with solutions to current social issues in areas such as education, healthcare or sustainability. In recent years, for example, we have supported participants in devising solutions for an inclusive labour market and a more circular economy.

With our experts in freedom of expression, we are involved in matters concerning human rights. We also continue to contribute to many initiatives that make a positive impact on protecting human rights in society. We are legal partners of Stop Aids Now, Amnesty International, Greenpeace, KWF and Lawyers for Lawyers. We participate in the Dutch Lawyers Committee for Human Rights (NJCM) and work at adjusted rates for organisations with a social profile. With all our in-house expertise, we enjoy working together on high-profile pro bono cases that can change society for the better and/or address social problems.

We are actively involved in our community and enjoy participating in initiatives that allow us to make a difference. Examples are large non-profit projects as well as smaller projects, which directly impact the local community. We like to support projects near our office (Westerpark, Business4Bees), as well as projects that impact our community more broadly, such as People4Change and Lawyers for Lawyers.

We are aware of our impact on the environment and climate change. Measuring our carbon footprint provides us with insight to take targeted actions so that we contribute to a healthier planet for future generations. We compensate the CO2 footprint of our employees via the Planet Positive Workforce initiative. By doing so, we support projects in Kenya, Mozambique, Zambia and Brazil. For more information, please check here. We also value having our sustainability ambitions visible in labels such as Ecovadis.

We have a sustainable office with an energy-efficient heat and cold storage system. Our roof terrace has sedum vegetation, and our vegetation grows throughout the season, so many bees and butterflies find refuge here. Our vegetation is watered with water from our rain barrels.