A solicitor has been struck off after he was found to have failed to comply with court orders. Sole practitioner Anthony Burns, admitted in December 1989, did not attend and was not represented before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal. The three-person panel agreed to continue the substantive hearing in his absence finding Burns had not engaged in the proceedings.
Burns was alleged to have failed to comply with the final decision of the legal ombudsman, requiring the LeO to obtain a court order to enforce its decision; failed to comply with the court obtained by the LeO from Liverpool County Court in a timely manner; caused or allowed inaccurate and/or misleading information to be provided to the firm’s prospective insurers; and failed to comply with court orders in a timely manner.
The tribunal found all the allegations proved.
Burns was the recognised sole practitioner, owner, and manager at Southport-based firm Mawdsleys Solicitors. The Solicitors Regulation Authority intervened in the firm in August 2024 and suspended Burns’ practising certificate.
The allegations related to Burns acting as a trustee to manage the estate of a client and hold and invest sums on behalf of Person A until she was 18. A complaint was later made to the legal ombudsman by Person A’s mother after she informed the firm Person A was turning 18 in July 2016 and requesting the withdrawal of funds.
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In 2017, the LeO found the firm had failed to release the funds, failed to engage substantively with the investigation and failed to respond properly to the complaint. It directed the firm to pay £400 compensation and confirm in writing the balance of the investments and the date on which the funds would be released. In August 2022, Burns paid the compensation, but the trust funds remained unpaid. The LeO applied to the county court to enforce its decision and an order was made in January 2023. Burns later confirmed the investment amount and paid the outstanding sums.
Burns was also found guilty of not including information in insurance proposal forms, including his 2008 conviction related to a money laundering offence in which he was fined £2,000.
The tribunal found his conduct had been reckless. adding: ‘Whilst the non-compliance was serious in and of itself, the fact that repeated applications to court were necessary demonstrated Mr Burns’ failure to comply with his obligations.’
Striking Burns’ off the roll was the ‘only appropriate and proportionate sanction’, the SDT said. ‘His actions were planned,’ and his conduct was ‘aggravated by his proven dishonesty’.
Burns was also ordered to pay £39,335.90 costs.
