Ryan Carlisle Thomas in the community

With offices across Victoria and within metropolitan Melbourne, the work we do touches the lives of many people, most especially our clients of course, but also their families and the wider communities in which they live, work and play.

Naturally, as the firm concentrates on how best to help people who have been struck by injury from a legal perspective, so too do we support groups who help injured people and their families in other meangingful ways.

Some of the groups we support help bereaved family members come to terms with the tragic legacy of a workplace death. Others are regional groups, such as those set up to support asbestos sufferers.

We have also assisted and supported local workers employed overseas in countries including the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and East Timor. In 2000, the firm's work on behalf of sacked Solomon Island workers was recognised with the Public Interest Law Clearing House (PILCH) Pro Bono Teams Award.

Volunteering within the community

The firm is a long-timesupporter of legal aid centres in Victoria.

We regard it as important that people from across the firm lend their time and expertise to community work. Our people are encouraged to volunteer their time to local community legal aid groups and networks or involve themselves in local sporting and business groups.

For us, volunteering and providing financial support strengthens our ethic of service. It reminds us of the relevance of our work and the importance of never losing sight of the fact that, while we are in business, it is fundamentally the business of helping people.

Volunteering and financial support for the wider community is therefore a critical part of our culture, our philosophy and our values.

Groups and causes we are proud to support

University of Melbourne Law School’s Centre for Employment and Labour Relations Law

Ryan Carlisle Thomas is a proud sponsor of the University of Melbourne Law School’s Centre for Employment and Labour Relations Law (CELRL).

Our support assists CELRL to fund working papers, seminars and research activities in the field of employment and labour relations.

Inner Melbourne Community Legal - Health Justice Partnerships

Our firm is a major supporter of Inner Melbourne Community Legal (IMCL) and their Health Justice Partnership, providing financial support and pro bono legal services.

IMCL is a not-for-profit community organisation offering free legal assistance to disadvantaged people in North Melbourne and parts of Carlton, Parkville, West Melbourne, Docklands, and the Melbourne CBD.

The organisation is also a pioneer in the creative deployment of the law in non-legal settings, an example of which are its Health Justice Partnerships.

Ryan Carlisle Thomas has been a loyal partner in helping IMCL establish outreach legal services at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and the Royal Women’s Hospital. Through this free service, lawyers work in conjunction with front line medical staff and inform, advise and refer inpatients and outpatients with legal issues which can be the cause of or contribute to their health problems.

BottledSnail Productions

BottledSnail Productions is a not-for-profit organisation operated by volunteers drawn from Melbourne’s legal community.

BottledSnail Productions

Image Courtesy of BottledSnail Productions.

The organisation produces and supports high-quality creative and theatrical productions. Since it was formed in 2013, BottledSnail has involved more than 350 legal professionals in creative projects ranging from full-scale theatre productions to lunchtime concerts. It has raised more than $45,000 for charity.

The organisation does a major service in promoting awareness of issues of mental illness and stress for those working in law whilst also offering those in the professional a creative outlet for their other talents.

In 2018, Ryan Carlisle Thomas was the principal sponsor of BottledSnail's major musical production of the Broadway hit, Into the Woods.

Along with financial support, the firm also volunteered staff time in production and performance.

Stringer Clark Community Fund

Through Stringer Clark, the firm’s regional Victorian arm, Ryan Carlisle Thomas is a staunch supporter of the local communities in which it has offices. As truly local lawyers, the firm supoorts a number of local sporting and community groups. Groups who are currently receiving funding include:

Applications for sponsorhip through the Stringer Clark Community Fund are accepted twice yearly from not-for-profit organisations based in Ballarat, Warrnambool, Portland, Horsham, Colac, Ararat, Hamilton, Cobden and their surrounds.

For further information, contact communityfund@stringerclark.com.au

Other groups and causes we have been proud to support

Bethany Community Support Inc, Geelong
Care Leavers Australasia Network (CLAN)
Too Young to Work: A project of the Child Labour Schools Company Ltd
Creative Ministeries: Restorative Justice and Work-Related Death Project