Corporate Social Responsibility
The Firm’s approach towards UN Sustainable Development Principles and Goals
With over 36 years of solid experience in the legal market, Shahid Law Firm with its highly qualified team of lawyers provides a broad spectrum of services to several multi-national leading corporations.
The Firm’s strength lies in its understanding of the clients’ legal needs which, coupled with knowledge of the Egyptian legal system, longstanding experience in transactional operations and dispute resolution, as well as close ties to other leading firms in the region and beyond, ensures that our clients can obtain the best and most optimally oriented legal service.
Goal No. 3 Good Health and Wellbeing
During COVID-19 pandemic, Shahid Law strived to ensure a healthy and safe environment for its members against this virus, which included social distancing, conducting internal workshops for raising awareness, supplying medical masks and sanitizers, remote working and installing virtual applications. Shahid Law also had collaborated with the Egyptian Ministry of Health (“MOH”) for all its employees to get the vaccines. In addition, the Firm collaborated with different healthcare providers to conduct regular PCR tests for the Firm’s members, whenever needed.”
Shahid Law also contributed to the Private Sector initiative led by AmCham Egypt in April 2020, in coordination with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), to support the MOH in its fight against COVID-19.
Regarding physical health, Shahid Law regularly participates and sponsors in sports events and tournaments alongside other law firms and leading organizations in Egypt. In April 2022, Shahid Law proudly sponsored and organized the First Padel Tournament for Law Firms in Egypt.
Recognizing typical stresses surrounding our legal profession, and the hardships in coping with challenges, tight-deadlines, and responsibilities towards our clients, we do promote for. understanding the necessity of maintaining mental health and encourage, Shahid Law encourages positive environment and building teamwork as well as honouring values such as respect and credibility. The Firm also supports individuals with disorders to help them cope with their challenges and feel productive.
Goal No. 4 Quality Education
Shahid Law offers learning opportunities and innovative internship programs for lawyers and law students not only in Egypt, but also around the world and even virtually for the students who were unable to travel to Egypt due to the 2019 global health pandemic. Shahid Law collaborates on a regular basis with universities including Cairo University, Alexandria University, Sorbonne Université, the German University in Cairo (GUC), the American University of Cairo (AUC), and the British University in Egypt (BUE) among other universities. The Firm also encourages its team members to pursue post-graduate studies abroad and accept secondment whether in Egypt or abroad for the purpose of broadening and enhancing their academic skills, cultural exposure, and work experience; majority of Shahid Law obtained a master’s degree and some of them travelled to pursue this opportunity.
In addition, Shahid Law also supports the national teams participating in international arbitration competitions by sponsoring many conferences such as the Alexandria-CRCICA International Pre-Moot for the Willem C. VIS and International Commercial Arbitration Conference.
Goal No. 5 Gender Equality
Shahid Law focuses on achieving gender equality, diversity and empowering all women and ensures equal representation among women and men members of Shahid Law with respect to their roles and positions. In 2022, the women employees of the Firm accounted for approximately 36% of the total employment.
Shahid Law believes in raising the next generation of woman leaders. We pair women at critical phases of their career development with partners to ensure they receive opportunities, experience, and exposure, so they can advance to positions of leadership within the Firm and broader legal profession.
Additionally, the Firm is also unique by providing true diversity for women and minority groups, empowering female lawyers; and is considered one of the leading firms in Cairo legal community in the number of women and minority groups in leadership positions within the Firm.
Goal No. 7 Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all
Law firms traditionally use vast amounts of paper and energy, which is often too much and lead to enormous amounts of waste. However, Shahid Law has always thought of sustainability and sustainable development.
Ever since our establishment, our founders have always taken measures to reduce our ecological impact, such as reducing paper usage by duplex printing or reusing old paper as drafts.
The start of Covid-19 was a true test to “sustainable development”, as Shahid Law put to assess its implementations of working from distances, maintaining paperless workflow, using e-filing and e-billing.
Goal No. 8 Decent work and Economic Growth
Shahid Law promotes sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. This was achieved during the pandemic where we were keen on ensuring the safety of our members and our institution, and the challenge which we had faced during these difficult times was making the decision to stay open while adopting the fixable approach of working from home without compromising on the workload and ensuring that the quality of the legal service delivered to our clients remained intact. We believe in providing a sense of community and belonging for our lawyers and business services colleagues and giving a sense of pride to our business services staff, as they are our backbone.
Goal No. 12 Responsible Consumption and Production
Shahid Law joined the “GreenBox Community” organized by Infofort Company. This initiative positively contributed to environment and our carbon footprint.
By adopting this initiative, the Firm saved weight of recycled paper, number of trees, gallons of water, and gallons of oil. GreenBox is 100% ECO friendly Infofort Initiative that aims to create awareness on paper wastage and its negative impact, education on paper recycling and its benefits, change in peoples’ paper consumption habits, and sustain ability on the environment.
Goal No. 16 Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions
Law firms play a key role in fighting unequal access to justice every day. Shahid Law takes on its shoulder to defend the rights of those who do not have equal access to justice, which has always been the policy of our Firm, to the extent of providing pro bono legal services.
Post the 2011 Egyptian revolution, Shahid Law consolidated its forces and successfully defended international media institutions and non-governmental organizations. This helped give members and employees of these institutions and organizations an equal and fair access to fight for justice and to secure their acquittal.
