The apparent closure of a network of firms came as such a shock that some remote working staff became aware only when they tried to log on to work on Monday morning. Others arrived at offices in Yorkshire, Cumbria and Berkshire only to be told that the business was closing down and they were out of a job.
‘Many arrived at work as normal only to be informed that the company had ceased trading with immediate effect,’ one employee told the Gazette. ‘All staff were made unemployed without warning and instructed to collect our personal belongings, hand in our keys, and leave the building. The situation has been shocking and deeply unsettling for everyone affected.’
One branch manager told us they had been instructed on Sunday to put a sign on the door saying that, due to regulatory matters, the firm had been forced to close.
They had tried to contact staff before Monday morning and faced the unenviable task of trying to explain what had happened without understanding it themselves.
The worst aspect, several staff have confirmed, is that there was no way of telling clients what had happened.
‘We were told the systems with all contact details and emails were shut down, so there was nothing we could do. I hate to think of my clients believing I have just abandoned them, when nothing could be further from the truth. There was no orderly process for winding down. As far as I know, client files are still in the office with nobody in the building.’
The feeling of helplessness appears to have been exacerbated by PM Law’s modus operandi, which was to bring a group of independent firms under one umbrella. While individual firms may have still been valued and thriving members of their local communities, they have been caught up in the group’s collapse and will have to face the anger of affected clients. The parallels with other accumulator firms such as Metamorph and Axiom Ince – both of which have presented the Solicitors Regulation Authority with enormous difficulties – are easy to find.
One former worker with Sheffield-based Proddow Mackay posted on Linkedin that what had happened was ‘completely out of the control’ of the firm.
They added: ‘Proddow Mackay is quite simply the best firm I have ever had the privilege of working for, and it saddens me that there is a possibility myself and my team will be disbanded through no choice of our own, nor the choice of our amazing director who continues to support us through this difficult time.’
The SRA said on Monday that PM Law Limited had not closed ‘in the manner we would expect’. It pledged to contact the partners to find out what was happening and ‘remind them of their professional obligations’.
But despite the phone lines and websites being taken out of service, and with no announcement from anyone at the group about what clients should do, the SRA has opted for now not to intervene into the firm.
‘If we were intervene, it would only be because client interests were at serious risk,’ said a spokesperson. ‘Contacting clients remains the responsibility of the firm as it is not officially closed. As our updated note for callers says, we expect clients to be contacted soon.’
The SRA will likely be trying to contact the five directors named in Companies House documents: Donald Mackay, Sabyta Kaushal, Richard Helsby, Timothy Hawksworth and Jonathan Bostock.
Bostock, who was a director of defunct firm Pure Legal from September 2015 to March 2017, remains an active director of 13 different entities – some of which are in the PM Law group. An accountant by trade, he was chief executive with PM Law Ltd and oversaw the expansion of the business as it acquired more than 20 regional firms.
The PM Law Group itself was formed in 1990 and has grown into a combined group of more than 600 people. According to its Linkedin page, it was advertising for new recruits until as recently as three weeks ago.
As of 31 October 2024, according to the group financial accounts, it owed £3.1m to creditors within one year. The accounts also revealed that associated company Proddow Mackay Solicitors LLP owed £1.4m to HM Revenue & Customs.
There may be remaining liabilities to some of the firms that have been brought into the group in recent years. The annual accounts for Derby-based John M Lewis & Co Limited show that around £66,000 was still due in 2024 from PM Law Limited in the form of an interest-free loan payable on demand.
As of March 2024, PM Law also owed £67,500 to Linkfield Claims Services Limited, where Bostock is also a director, although that company also owed Proddow Mackay Legal Limited the sum of £17,350.
There is no suggestion that any monies have been misappropriated or are missing, but the SRA will be conscious of the criticism following the collapse of Axiom Ince that it failed to intervene sooner and protect client money. It may be that the regulator acts this week to ensure assets are protected.
In the meantime, the legal profession has rallied round to signpost job openings and supportive messages to those who find themselves out of work. It is one positive note in another week which threatens to once again cast the legal profession in a negative light.
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