SRA: Strong public interest in controlling cashier’s employment with law firms
A legal cashier who received a suspended jail sentence for stealing money from her law firm’s office account has been banned from the profession.
Jenny Spink can only be employed by a law firm in future with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), after she accepted imposition of an order under section 43 of the Solicitors Act 1974..
According to a regulatory settlement agreement published by the regulator yesterday, Ms Spink works at Leeds firm Pudsey Legal Services for two years to April 2022.
The firm subsequently discovered that she had transferred a total of £4,650 from office account to her own bank account in five payments over the period of a year.
Pudsey Legal reported her to both the SRA and the police, leading to Ms Spink pleading guilty to fraud by abuse of position in May 2023.
Leeds Crown Court sentenced her to 12 months’ imprisonment suspended for 18 months, a rehabilitation activity requirement of 15 days, an unpaid work requirement of 175 hours within the next year, and to pay compensation of £4,650.
The SRA said it took into account her mitigation that she admitted her conduct at an early stage, “she had personal problems at the time of the conduct which caused her to act out of character” and she offered to pay the money back early on.
The agreement said her role, as a legal cashier, “relied on honesty and integrity”. It continued: “There is a risk that Ms Spink may act in a similar way in the future. As such, there is a strong public interest in controlling Ms Spink’s employment with firms we regulate.”
