WASHINGTON, D.C. – Pro Bono Institute (PBI) is pleased to honor Meta Legal Department – in partnership with TozziniFreire Advogados, and UNAS – União de Núcleos, Associações dos Moradores de Heliópolis e Região – with the 2025 CPBO Pro Bono Partner Award. PBI will present the award on Monday, October 27, at the PBI Annual Dinner at Gotham Hall in New York. Corporate Pro Bono (CPBO), a project of PBI, created the CPBO Pro Bono Partner Award to recognize innovative pro bono collaborations of in-house legal departments with law firms and public interest organizations. The Awardees demonstrate impactful and innovative pro bono to address a critical legal need for a vulnerable community and take tangible steps toward creating a sustained partnership.
Meta, TozziniFreire, and UNAS have built a pro bono partnership over the past six years to provide pro bono legal services to residents of the Heliópolis favela, an underserved neighborhood of 200,000 residents, in São Paulo, Brazil. Through the partnership, pro bono volunteers from Meta and TozziniFreire provide legal guidance to residents on a wide range of topics, including family law, consumer law, social security, labor law, and criminal law. This project exemplifies how corporate legal teams can make a meaningful impact in their communities, offering sensitive, culturally aware, and empathetic assistance.
“Congratulations to Meta, TozziniFreire, and UNAS on this well-deserved award,” said PBI President and CEO Eve Runyon. “This partnership serves as a valuable resource to increase access to justice in Heliópolis, providing legal advice and education in areas where significant disparities exist. It also highlights the meaningful impact corporate legal teams have when partnering with local and regional partners to provide vital pro bono services.”
Since the partnership’s inception in 2019, more than 300 volunteers have dedicated almost 4,700 hours to conduct more than 1,000 consultations. In 2024, the partnership mobilized 110 volunteers who dedicated more than 1,500 hours to providing essential assistance in four different locations of the Heliópolis territory. Among 300 consultations, 33% of cases are related to social security law, indicating a high demand for guidance regarding retirement, disability benefits, and families facing extreme financial vulnerability. Given that over 80% of families in Heliópolis are composed of single mothers and their children, the partnership has primarily supported women, who represent almost 53% of the individuals assisted. Many of these clients have legal needs such as divorce, child support, and custody arrangements, in addition to more urgent matters like domestic violence.
Additionally, the partnership helps alleviate the demand for services directed at UNAS, the association that enables services and disciplinary activities to defend and promote the rights of Heliópolis’ residents, assisting an average of 6,000 people monthly. This joint approach fosters trust between the partnership and the community, as evidenced by a remarkable five-fold increase in criminal law consultations.
The partnership demystifies the legal process and empowers community members to engage with the justice system to address their legal challenges. This proactive approach not only enhances individual outcomes but also contributes to broader social change, fostering an environment where justice is more accessible and ultimately working to reduce systemic inequalities within the Brazilian legal system.
“This partnership with TozziniFreire and UNAS demonstrates how in-house legal teams can help bridge access-to-justice gaps in Heliópolis,” said the Pro Bono Meta Legal Team. “We’re honored to support community-led solutions that deliver real, tangible outcomes for vulnerable families.”
Thanks to Meta, TozziniFreire, and UNAS for utilizing their partnership to provide holistic legal services to the unserved residents of the Heliópolis favela in São Paulo, Brazil.
Read the full Meta CPBO Pro Bono Partner Awardee profile.
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About Meta Legal Department
Meta is a global company building the future of human connection and technology that makes it possible through brands, such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
The Meta Legal Department is responsible for handling all legal matters for the company, including security, compliance, litigation, privacy and regulatory. The department plays a crucial role in navigating the legal landscape surrounding Meta’s platforms and products.
About TozziniFreire Advogados
TozziniFreire is one of the leading legal services organizations in Latin America, operating in all areas of business law and with a significant track record in serving national and foreign companies from a wide range of sectors. In 2020, TozziniFreire officially launched its Business and Human Rights practice, as the first Brazilian law firm to have an area exclusively dedicated to the topic, becoming a national and international benchmark. With its own offices in several cities in Brazil and a strong international presence, TozziniFreire ensures a unique standard of quality and service.
TozziniFreire’s collaborative culture, with integrity, social responsibility, and respect for diversity, makes us more than a law firm. We are a strategic partner for our clients, delivering legal and business solutions with innovation, agility, and creativity.
About UNAS – União de Núcleos, Associações dos Moradores de Heliópolis e Região
UNAS – União de Núcleos, Associações dos Moradores de Heliópolis e Região is a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 as a committee formed by residents of the Heliópolis favela, mobilized by the fight for the right to housing and land ownership.
We believe that every person has rights, regardless of age, and we work to strengthen their autonomy in building citizenship. We seek to break down the invisible barriers that separate the outskirts of the city from other neighborhoods, ensuring that our community has access to opportunities and rights. To this end, we establish partnerships with the government, the private sector, and social organizations, enabling the implementation of projects, programs, and services in various areas such as: education, culture, social assistance, sports, health, work, women’s rights, youth, the LGBTQIAP+ population, housing, and grassroots social movements.
About Pro Bono Institute
Founded in 1996, Pro Bono Institute (PBI) is a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization. With an unparalleled depth of knowledge, resources and expertise, PBI is the respected resource for all things pro bono. Through our work with law firms, in-house corporate legal departments, and public interest organizations, PBI is the global thought leader in exploring, identifying, evaluating, catalyzing, and taking to scale new approaches to and resources for the provision of legal services to the poor, disadvantaged, and other individuals or groups unable to secure legal assistance to address critical problems.
About the Corporate Pro Bono project
The Corporate Pro Bono (CPBO) project, launched in 2000, is the initiative of PBI that supports, enhances, and transforms the pro bono efforts of in-house corporate legal departments. Since its inception, the CPBO project has worked with hundreds of legal departments around the globe to strengthen in-house pro bono.