Signatures: Solicitor asked others not to add dates
A solicitor has been struck off after more than 50 years on the roll after admitting dishonesty over the signing of a lasting power of attorney (LPA).
Susan Whitehead, 76 this year, also acted dishonestly in pretending to be someone else to obtain health information about her client.
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) has approved a statement of agreed facts and outcome between the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and Ms Whitehead, who qualified in 1974 and was a partner at Oxford firm Ferguson Bricknell.
She had acted for ‘Client A’ since 1982, during which time an unspecified “relationship” developed between them.
In April 2021, Client A suffered a stroke, which led to a cognitive decline and impacted his ability to read. His cognitive ability was assessed as showing a “significant deficit”, while visuospatial awareness and executive functioning were also impaired.
On 10 July 2021, following a decline in his health caused by vascular dementia, Client A was admitted to hospital. A few days later, Client A and Ms Whithead exchanged emails about her preparing an LPA, which she did but then asked the attorney and Client A not to date their signatures.
She was the certificate provider and submitted the LPA to the Office of the Public Guardian, with all the signatures backdated to 9 July.
The agreed statement noted that, to protect the interests of the donor, the signing of an LPA has to be undertaken in a strict order of donor, certificate provider and then attorney.
Further, there was a restriction on Ms Whithead acting as the certificate provider “due to her relationship with Client A”, while she was aware of Client A’s cognitive problems and that “he may not have been able to understand what he was signing”.
In late February 2022, Client A was readmitted to hospital. His family required any caller to the hospital seeking medical information about Client A to provide a password.
Ms Whithead admitted call the hospital but not having the password. “When asked for her name, she gave the name of a longstanding female friend of Client A, whom [she] thought Client A’s family would be content to be given the information.”
She said she did this to avoid Client A’s children being aware she had called. Client A died shortly afterwards.
The statement did not put forward any mitigation or explanation for these actions. Ms Whitehead admitted dishonesty and agreed she should be struck off. She also agreed to pay the SRA costs of £20,000.
The SRA shut down Ferguson Bricknell on 30 December, citing the need to protect the interests of clients and, alternatively, “because the partnership law practice has ceased to exist and no further recognition of it has been granted”.
Two years ago, the firm was fined £20,000 after the SRA found it had been “reckless” in failing to comply with the anti-money laundering requirements.
As the family of Client A it has been a long three year battle for justice which we have now finally won. Our full story needs to be told and we need to ensure this type of predatory behaviour happens again.