Compliance & Regulation

A solicitor whose incompetence enabled the transfer of an elderly man’s property to fraudsters for no consideration has been struck off, even although it was a single incident in a 19-year career.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority has used its enhanced fining power for the first time, imposing a £15,000 fine on a solicitor who failed clients subject to deputyship orders.

A barrister convicted of multiple child sex offences last year and jailed for three and a half years has now been disbarred. He did not know the children he had contacted were not real.

MPs have backed giving the Solicitors Regulation Authority unlimited fining powers in cases of economic crime, as well as a new regulatory objective for the Legal Services Act.

The Bar Council has taken the unusual step of criticising the Bar Standards Board for its “unacceptable and inexcusable” handling of a complaint against Dinah Rose KC.

Ten of the 40 law firms that took part in a Solicitors Regulation Authority review of immigration services have been referred for possible disciplinary action after it found “significant shortcomings”.

The Bar Standards Board has issued an apology to leading silk Dinah Rose for its handling of a complaint against her and suggesting she might have been reckless in her conduct.

The SRA’s guidance on disclosing confidential information “inappropriately discourages” lawyers from reporting serious misconduct and risks of harm, it has been claimed.

A solicitor convicted in the US of conspiracy to commit securities fraud has been struck off after a tribunal refused his attempt to explain why he signed a plea deal.

A veteran solicitor who used client money to alleviate his firm’s financial problems and also misled his insurer that he was authorised to practise when he no longer was, has been struck off.

Disgraced human rights lawyer Phil Shiner will have to wait nearly two years for his trial on four allegations of fraud, the Crown Court said on Friday.

An “old school” solicitor in his late 70s who overcharged three estates and a trust by nearly £500,000 to provide cash flow for his firm has been struck off.

Solicitors are to pay an extra £1.2m towards the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal in 2023 after its existing landlord pulled the offer of a new lease, meaning it will have to relocate.

A solicitor who was convicted of drug-driving and possession of cocaine, MDMA and cannabis has been fined £10,000, while another has been rebuked after being convicted of dangerous driving.

A law firm that at different times acted for either side of a development agreement it drafted, including on a dispute between the two parties, has been fined by the SRA.