An end-of-year message from CEO Justin D’Agostino

Thank you to our clients, our business partners and our friends.

For us, like many of you, it has been a year like no other, and as 2020 comes to a close, I wanted to say thank you.

Despite the many personal and professional challenges we’ve faced during the pandemic, we’ve worked hard to keep our people, our clients and our business partners at the heart of everything we do.

And we’ve deeply appreciated your friendship during these difficult times.

Despite the challenges, this year has shown us the power of what can be achieved together.

We have also tried hard to keep looking forward, to focus on what the future might look like after this year.

As well as the many initiatives on which we’ve worked together, we will continue to set bold targets for our firm.

• To do more to improve the ethnic diversity of our business, particularly at more senior levels.
• Permanently embedding flexibility into our ways of working for all of our people.
• And working towards our ambitious target of being net zero carbon by 2030.

This year, for all its pains and fear, has accelerated many changes in our societies -- some good, some not so good.

And we have much to do to rebuild our communities.  As a business -- as lawyers -- and as citizens of communities around the world -- our ambitions for 2021 must be bold, inclusive and creative.

On behalf of everyone at Herbert Smith Freehills, thank you.  And wherever you are, I wish you a safe and relaxing end of year break.