In honor of National Celebrate Pro Bono Week, Pro Bono Net has lined up a variety of guest bloggers from law firms, legal aid organizations and elsewhere to share their pro bono ideas and experiences. Today's post comes from Sarah L. Cave, a Partner at Hughes, Hubbard & Reed. Sarah is a faculty member at Practising Law Institute, a continuing legal education provider and one of Pro Bono Net's corporate sponsors.

No one was prouder of my becoming a lawyer than my grandfather. A tradesman who worked with his hands all his life, he had a heart ten times his size and went out of his way to help others. He instilled in me the importance of giving back to those in need. I was very fortunate to be invited to join a law firm that shares those values.

At Hughes Hubbard & Reed, it is "in our DNA" to provide pro bono legal services. The founder of our firm, Charles Evans Hughes, recognized that our justice system lacks integrity unless all people, regardless of their wealth, are well-represented, and he wove into the fabric of our firm the importance of public service.

Following his lead, my colleagues and I have put the resources of the firm to work keeping families together (or helping them separate peacefully), securing financial support to enable parents to provide for their families, obtaining freedom for those who have been unjustly accused or imprisoned, and seeking refuge in the United States for those who would be persecuted in their home countries.

There are few things more rewarding than seeing the face and hearing the voice of an elated client who, after years of discouragement and deprivation, has just taken her first breath of freedom. I am grateful to my grandfather for inspiring me to use my legal skills for the greater good, and to Charles Evans Hughes for building a firm in which I am able to do so.

Sarah L. Cave is a partner at Hughes Hubbard, where she concentrates on securities litigation, accountants' liability, and bankruptcy litigation. She has been admitted to the United States Supreme Court; United States Court of Appeals for the Second, Third, Fourth, and Seventh Circuits; and the United States District Courts for the Eastern, Southern, and Western Districts of New York. She is the recipient of the Legal Aid Society Pro Bono Publico Award for 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2010.