SRA: Profession should be a safe working environment
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is to appeal the decision to give only a suspended suspension to a law firm owner who bullied and harassed five junior members of staff.
The regulator said it considered the sanction handed out by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) to be “insufficiently severe”.
John Kishin Navani received a 12-month suspension, suspended for two years [1], along with restrictions preventing him from taking part in recruitment interviews or disciplinary investigations at any law firm over the same period.
Mr Navani, who qualified in 1996, was one of two partners at City firm Criminal Defence Solicitors and was primarily responsible for its management.
The allegations related to his conduct towards five women working in junior roles at the firm between 2016 and 2019.
The SDT found that 43 out of 50 allegations were proved in full, with two partly proved and five not proved. Five of the proven allegations were not considered misconduct, including him telling one staff member that he regularly used prostitutes.
The tribunal noted “significant recurring themes across the complainants’ evidence, including inappropriate personal questioning during interviews, comments about appearance or dress, dismissive or demeaning language, and conduct that blurred professional boundaries”.
Jonathan Peddie, executive director – investigations, enforcement and litigation at the SRA, said: “We brought this enforcement because we identified a repeat pattern of behaviour involving a number of victims which evidenced some of the most serious abuse of power imaginable: bullying, coercion, intimidation, abuse of the vulnerable and sexual harassment, conducted over a period of three years causing profound distress for five victims.
“Those individuals showed great personal strength in supporting the proceedings and bringing Mr Navani’s conduct to the attention of the tribunal.
“The profession should be a safe working environment for all involved in it. The SRA must and will challenge toxic behaviour, not just to address misconduct by individuals but also to send a message to the profession as to the consequences of not meeting the standards the public and employees fairly expect.”
Mr Peddie stressed that law firms had to protect their staff and recommended manager refreshed their knowledge of the guidance the SRA published in 2023 on creating a safe working environment.
“While this case proves that we do take action in appropriate circumstances, we believe the SDT’s sanction is insufficiently severe. It fails to reflect the true nature of Mr Navani’s misconduct and therefore will not constitute an effective deterrent. That is why we have appealed.