Solicitor cleared over cut-price sale of 82-year-old's home

A conveyancing solicitor instructed on the quick cash sale of a pensioner’s house did not breach any conduct rules, the tribunal has ruled. The daughter of the 82-year-old client intervened to stop the transaction and then complained.

But following a two-day hearing, the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal found that Mohammed Israr, admitted in 2019, had not failed to properly advise the client about the risks and consequences of the sale, nor had he failed to take account of the client’s needs.

Its ruling said: ‘The tribunal recognised the importance of solicitors safeguarding clients and upholding their professional duty to act in their clients’ best interests. ‘However, that duty has to be judged in the context of the scope of a solicitor’s retainer and does not necessarily require a solicitor to second-guess the clear instructions of a client who has mental capacity and gives no indication of confusion or vulnerability.’

All allegations against Israr were dismissed and the tribunal made no order for costs.

Israr was a consultant solicitor with Birmingham firm Lawrence Kurt Solicitors when he was instructed in relation to the sale of the client’s home. The client had wanted a quick sale as he was reportedly concerned about the end of his mortgage deal, and had responded to a newspaper advertisement offering to purchase properties for cash.

The client had instructed in December 2022 that exchange take place immediately upon the return of the client care letter. The sale price was agreed at £40,000 and the client stated that he was happy to proceed.

The client’s daughter became aware of the sale contract and phoned Israr to say that her father did not want to sell. The solicitor wrote to the buyer’s solicitors to say the transaction was not proceeding and that funds which had been transferred were being sent back. An estate agent later told the daughter that the property was worth £195,000 on the open market. The client died in September 2023 before an assessment of his mental capacity.

Israr denied all allegations of wrongdoing, telling the tribunal he was under no legal or professional duty to question the agreed sale price, investigate the mortgage position, or provide advice on financial alternatives. The scope of the retainer expressly excluded such matters, and Israr was entitled to rely on his client’s rationale for the sale. The solicitor stated that he believed the client had capacity and was aware of the implications of the sale.

The tribunal said this was not a case involving a solicitor taking advantage of a vulnerable client. The client, who lived alone, was clear that he wanted to sell his home at a low price and knew this would mean he needed to find somewhere else to live, at one point telling Israr he would ‘sort this’.

Israr accepted in his evidence he could have done more and that some of the practices at his firm have since changed to protect clients, but the tribunal said these were improvements and examples of good practice, rather than a sign that regulations had been breached.