Owner banned for a year over ‘shambolic’ firm shutdown
Tribunal says Stephen Deakin acted without integrity by abandoning client matters.
Solicitor in sham marriage TV sting loses strike-off appeal
High Court rules that tribunal had followed the correct process and came to the right conclusion.
Solicitor fined for high risk property deals
Partner failed to advise clients about 'obvious pitfalls' of off-plan developments.
SRA defends Claire Matthews prosecution
Neither one's health nor one's junior position justify culpable dishonesty, says regulator.
Solicitor backdated signed document not knowing injury claim client had died
Practitioner said he was acting in client’s interests and planned to get retrospective approval.
Solicitor banned for bluffing to opposing party over mediation
South Wales litigation solicitor ‘reluctantly’ agrees to be struck off over misleading mediation statements.
SDT decisions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Tribunal under fire for protecting solicitors through non-disclosure
SDT says non-parties to cases cannot have an automatic right to see documents used in prosecutions.
Solicitor banned for running £8m banking facility through firm
Barbara Gribbin said she was ‘stupid enough’ to agree to the scheme as she struggled to run practice.
Junior lawyers ‘lose confidence’ in SRA after Matthews prosecution
JLD chair says the regulator must review its policy on junior lawyers who report mental health issues.
SDT decisions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Baker McKenzie: QC calls SRA case ‘unnecessary’
Hearings in long-running disciplinary case against firm and three former executives concluded last week.
SDT to deliver verdict on Baker McKenzie case in June
Solicitors Regulation Authority defends prosecution as substantive hearing draws to a close.
Baker McKenzie: QC defends ‘inappropriate’ emails
Messages were taken out of context and out of order, Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal hears.
Baker's QC accuses SRA of 'moving the goalposts'
Firm's closing submissions warn of 'chilling effect' from any finding of misconduct.
Baker McKenzie: 'Failed pass' was not professional misconduct, QC says
Many relationships in law firms form between junior and senior colleagues, Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal hears.
SDT decisions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Former Baker McKenzie bosses disagree over SRA conversation
Management committee 'took counsel' on whether to report Gary Senior case to regulator, tribunal told.
Former Baker McKenzie HR chief 'could not rely on GC not to gossip'
Tribunal hears that general counsel was kept out of decision-making circle over settlement agreement.
Solicitor cleared of misconduct over role in tax avoidance schemes
Tribunal finds Cheshire lawyer did sufficient due diligence on schemes and their promoters.
Baker McKenzie boss 'would have been suspended today', tribunal hears
Former HR chief said the situation was 'very hard to manage' with Gary Senior still in the office.
Baker McKenzie hearing returns in virtual SDT courtroom
Former human resources head says he was not involved in sanctioning Gary Senior.
SDT decisions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Exclusive: Struck-off junior files appeal with pro bono help
Claire Matthews says she wants to highlight mental health issues in the legal profession.
Solicitor who sub-let council flat is struck off
Tribunal decision follows magistrates' court 2018 conviction for dishonesty.
Trusted solicitor stole thousands from clients who saw him as friend
Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal says David Grant committed a ‘monumental’ breach of trust.
Decisions and interventions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
SRA will not punish its own adviser for not reporting lying solicitor
Capsticks did not report junior over conduct deemed so serious she needed to be struck off.
Local authority lawyer fined at SDT after second drink-drive conviction
Solicitor had been out with work colleagues and said he was called away by family emergency.
Lawyers make pro bono appeal offer to struck-off briefcase junior
Hunt is on to trace former junior lawyer who was banned by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.
Directors ignorant of firm’s accounts breaches each fined £10k
Michael Wilson and Sean Rogers each sanctioned after shortages found on firm’s accounts.
Delay Baker McKenzie case until autumn, SDT urged
Unfair for final respondent to give evidence via video link, Jonathan Laidlaw QC tells tribunal.
Baker McKenzie case returns to tribunal - via Zoom
Plans being made for most SDT cases in the coming weeks to be heard remotely.
Junior solicitor banned for lies about briefcase left on a train
Practitioner had been qualified for less than a year when she lied to her firm about what had happened to sensitive documents.
SDT decisions and interventions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
SDT decisions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
In-house lawyer was ‘puppet director’ for dubious £16m schemes
Timothy Ackrel had been ‘under the thumb’ of beneficiaries who enjoyed a luxurious lifestyle from his services.
SDT: decisions and interventions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Holiday claims boss suspended over misleading letters
Solicitor sent letters to tour operators containing incorrect and misleading information.
Solicitor, 66, banned after trying to kiss 15-year-old in pub
Practitioner convicted at magistrates’ court agrees strike-off after legal career lasting almost 40 years.
Solicitor who cashed £4,700 into personal account struck off
Tribunal found the solicitor’s conduct was a ‘complete departure from the integrity and probity required from solicitors’.
SDT: Decisions and interventions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Tribunal clears partner alleged to have patted colleague’s bottom
Judgment concludes Person A was ‘prone to exaggeration and embellishment'.
Owner turned ‘Nelsonian blind eye’ to dodgy PI claims
Solicitor struck off and ordered to pay £55,000 after putting referrers’ interests above those of his clients.
SDT decisions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Seeing ‘Person A’
A record number of sexual harassment and assault cases came before the SDT in 2019, with more promised in 2020. Is this tribunal the proper forum for these cases and how is it coping in what is unfamiliar territory? Eduardo Reyes reports
Beckwith to appeal SDT ruling
Solicitor for former Freshfields partner confirms grounds to appeal were filed last Wednesday.
Retiring solicitor took on new matters despite pledge to shut down
Colin Grooms was also found to have failed to co-operate with the legal ombudsman over a client complaint.
SDT: Decisions and interventions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Bar suspends lawyer who was struck off by SDT
Aurang Khattak was struck off the roll of solicitors in 2012 following repeated breaches of the Solicitors’ Accounts Rules.
SDT decisions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Solicitor who overcharged clients and lied about bills struck off
Ieuan Michael Jones was found to have overcharged clients to keep the firm afloat and financially benefit.
Novice solicitor struck off over backdated signatures on legal aid form
Charles Myers also sought to destroy documents by putting them through the shredder.
Dishonest solicitor misled clients about case progress to ‘buy time’
Catherine Sandbach agrees to be struck off the roll of solicitors.
Solicitor cleared of overcharging with £45,000 estate bill
Tribunal finds Somerset practitioner was entitled to believe at the time that fees were correct.
SDT decisions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
Four months on, SDT publishes Beckwith judgment
Solicitors Regulation Authority claimed £343,957 in costs, which tribunal reduced to £200,000.
Veteran solicitor sorry after diverting £84k to shore up ailing firm
John Leonard Turner offers wholehearted apology ahead of being struck off for dishonesty.
Solicitor who refused penniless asylum seeker legal aid struck off
The tribunal found the solicitor had ‘taken advantage’ of an ‘inherently vulnerable’ client.
SDT decisions
Decisions filed recently with the Law Society (which may be subject to appeal).
