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Appeal for Funds

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You are here: BAILII >> About BAILII >> Appeal for Funds
URL: https://www.bailii.org/bailii/appeal.html

Thank you for considering making a donation to BAILII.

Why does BAILII appeal for funds?

BAILII is a charity committed to providing free access to the law for all. It relies on donations to fund the very modest costs of maintaining and extending its free-to-access databases of legal information. With a three-person, mostly part-time staff and an annual budget of approximately £225,000,1 BAILII hosts 139 databases covering 14 jurisdictions and uploads almost 500 judgments per week.

Why donate to BAILII?

BAILII was founded in 2000 to promote access to justice by providing free online databases of case law, legislation, and other legal materials. At that time, accessing judgments, which is essential in common law jurisdictions like those of the UK, was largely impossible without an expensive database subscription or a very well-stocked law library. That level of cost exceeded the means of many who needed access to the law, particularly advice sector organisations, individuals, and small firms. The same is true today.

A contribution to BAILII helps ensure that everyone has free access to a reliable, independent, cookie-free source of judgments and other legal materials. In 2023, we had almost 5 million visitors and over 100 million page views. For the underfunded advice sector and community law centres, BAILII is an essential resource. In addition, BAILII is widely used by the legal education and training community (students, academics, librarians, and researchers), litigants in person, journalists, those working to promote access to justice and the rule of law, as well as individuals around the world. A donation to BAILII supports the infrastructure that is essential for access to justice, so that everyone – citizens and residents as well as the people and organisations who represent them – has access to the laws under which they live.

If you use BAILII, whether regularly or occasionally, a donation also ensures that you will continue to have access to the free, multi-jurisdictional databases that you need. BAILII is widely used among legal practitioners and their library/knowledge management support teams. While many have access to subscription services, they also use BAILII for a variety of reasons, such as staying up to date via BAILII's lists of recent and popular judgments. In a 2018 survey of users, 100% of responding barristers and solicitors said that they used BAILII, and the majority were daily users. To remain viable, BAILII needs the financial support of those who use it.

Contributions from those who support BAILII's aims and/or make regular use of the BAILII website are welcomed and gratefully received.

Donating to BAILII

If you wish to discuss becoming a donor – particularly if you are a corporate or institutional donor interested in making a multi-year commitment (e.g. 3 years), or if you would like to donate £5,000 or more – please e-mail partnerships@bailii.org.

Methods of Donating

To donate online, please click to visit BAILII’s Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) page. This is the most appropriate route for the majority of individual donors, and UK taxpayers can register for Gift Aid, which will increase the donation's value by 25%. Donations can be made using the following:

N.B. CAF cannot process corporate/institutional donations unless the corporation/institution has its own CAF account.

Donations can be made directly to BAILII’s bank account. This is the most appropriate route for the majority of corporate/institutional donors. If you would like to use this method, please e-mail partnerships@bailii.org to discuss your donation and request bank details.

If you would like to donate to BAILII but are unable to use either of the above methods, please contact us at partnerships@bailii.org so that we may discuss other options.

Acknowledgment of Donations

Corporate donations will be recorded on BAILII’s donor page. Individual donors who contribute over £500 will be asked if they would like their generosity to be recorded in this way. If you would prefer to remain anonymous, please e-mail partnerships@bailii.org.

The Trustees of BAILII are very grateful for your support and commitment to providing free access to the law for all.

Guy Beringer CBE KC (Hon.)
Chair, BAILII Board of Trustees

British and Irish Legal Information Institute
Company No. 4131252. Registered Charity no. 1084803.

Registered Office: 10 Queen Street Place, London EC4R 1BE.

Executive Director: Dr Ann M. Hale
ann.hale@sas.ac.uk

BAILII thanks the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, a legal research institute which is part of the School of Advanced Study at the University of London, for its ongoing hosting and support.

1 BAILII's annual budget does not include replacement of computer hardware and other items which are not incurred annually.


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URL: https://www.bailii.org/bailii/appeal.html