Synonyms

pro bono

American

[proh boh-noh] / ˌproʊ ˈboʊ noʊ /

Or pro-bono

adjective

(of legal work) without charge to the client.

The firm offers pro bono legal services. He took the case pro bono.

Etymology

Origin of pro bono

First recorded in 1720–30, pro bono is from Latin prō bonō “for (the) good, rightly, morally”

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Gil found a Santa Fe firm and got legal help pro bono.

From Slate • Mar. 25, 2026

Hill claimed to be working pro bono, although the center’s IRS filings revealed hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees, and on one occasion he invented a phone conversation with me that never happened.

From Salon • Feb. 22, 2026

She is a pro bono lawyer on some of the most sensitive cases, including the enforced disappearances of ethnic Balochs, as well as defending the community's top activist, Mahrang Baloch.

From Barron's • Jan. 24, 2026

Another time, he represented pro bono an HIV patient at risk of eviction.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 26, 2025

Well, according to Charles “Chip” Pashayan, Bobby’s pro bono lawyer, the Treasury Department could and would fine and imprison him.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023