Pro Bono

The working group Law Firm Management in the German Lawyers’ Association has set itself the task of strengthening the lawyers in small and medium-sized law firms with regard to their competence in managing the law firm. Therefore, it tries to bundle and disseminate existing knowledge, to offer it in events, to network and to make the most important findings available to as many law firms as possible with partners.

To this end, it has also written the law firm business plan for legal start-ups, which the German Lawyers’ Association publishes on its homepage and in the book: DAV-Ratgeber für junge Rechtsanwältinnen und Rechtsanwälte.

Christoph H. Vaagt was pro bono chairman of the executive committee of this working group from March 2003 to May 2012. He coordinates the activities and is committed to ensuring that as many law firms as possible find their way into the future.

In 2010 he founded the Prof. Dr. Benno Heussen Prize for Law Firm Management, which is regularly awarded by the Working Group Law Firm Management of the German Lawyers’ Association.

He continues to be available to the AG as a member of the board.
Working Group Lawyer Management

The Prof. Dr. Benno Heussen Award is given by the AG Kanzleimanagement im Deutschen Anwaltverein e.V. to personalities who have rendered outstanding services to the concerns of the legal profession, in particular the organisation of law firms. It was awarded for the first time in 2010 by Christoph H. Vaagt to the name bearer.

The European Law Moot Court Society was founded in Munich in 1988 by Christoph H. Vaagt together with six other law students with the aim of giving students a practical understanding of European law. For this purpose, the model of the Moot Court, as it already existed for international law and human rights, was extended to European law. After an initial successful implementation at the European University Institute in Florence, the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg invited the organisers to have the final competitions held annually at the Court.

Christoph H. Vaagt, as founding president, is still regularly associated with the Moot Court and supports the organisation in the annual review of the procedural rules which he has drawn up.

In October 1989, the first Moot Court in European Law was held at the European University Institute in Florence, in the Villa Schifanoia. At that time there was only the competition in human rights, Rene Cassin, and the moot in international law, Phillip C. Jessup.

Christoph H. Vaagt saw this gap in the education of young lawyers and believed that pleading a case before the European Court of Justice could considerably improve the students’ understanding of European law. With the patronage of the then President of the European Court of Justice, Ole Due, and among other things through the active cooperation of the newly appointed first president of the newly established first instance of the EugH, Jose Luis da Cruz Vilaca, the organisation of the first moots was a great challenge.

In 2014 the 25th anniversary was celebrated at the ECJ in Luxembourg.

Leonhard is a non-profit enterprise for the entrepreneurial qualification of prisoners. Our task is the integration of the prisoners into society after their release. It is our goal to reduce the recidivism rate of former prisoners considerably through our program and thus reduce the burden on society and the state.

Christoph H. Vaagt is invited as a coach for certain program components.