A male former senior solicitor at an international firm was today struck off the roll for his part in a sexual fantasy relationship with an 18-year-old female colleague while in a position of seniority. Oliver Bretherton, at the time a director at global firm Gowling WLG, was also ordered to pay £23,500 costs.

Sexting senior solicitor struck off with £23,500 costs

Bretherton, admitted in 2007, had contested some of the allegations, telling the tribunal that his relationship with ’Person A’ was consensual. Today’s ruling followed more than 12 days of substantive hearings at the tribunal, making it one of the longest cases in its history.

It is understood this is the first time a solicitor has been struck off for non-criminal sexual misconduct in the workplace.

The full reasons for the SDT decision will be published in a written ruling later this summer. The ruling may also set out why a case which took so long – and which included a number of case management hearings – resulted in a relatively small costs order. Bretherton will have 21 days from the publication of the judgment to lodge any appeal.

The tribunal found 70 particular allegations proved against Bretherton. His conduct was found to be sexually motivated in some cases and amounted to an abuse of position and a lack of integrity.

The tribunal had heard that Bretherton, who is married, engaged in a ‘fantasised sexual relationship’ with Person A, exchanging WhatsApp messages and sending her a video of him masturbating. The SRA outlined during the hearing that he gave the teenager tasks ‘relating to his sexual gratification’. He told her he wanted to ‘f*** her and he would do it in the office and didn’t care if there was a glass wall’.

The tribunal also heard that Bretherton told Person A she should sleep with a man she was meeting for a date and send pictures of them having sex.

He would send messages from first thing in the morning and Person A would have a ‘stream of messages’ by the time she arrived at work.

One witness who worked at the same firm said Bretherton had described Person A as ‘the fittest’ after interviewing her for a role at the firm. The witness said Bretherton and Person A were flirting with each other in her first week at Gowling. They later kissed during a night out with other work colleagues.

Bretherton said this was a consensual relationship and he denied taking advantage of his seniority. He told the tribunal that he viewed Person A as a mature and confident adult and said this was a relationship she was ‘actively encouraging and instigating’.

Further allegations of misconduct were found proved in relation to two other women who worked with Bretherton.

Person B, who was in her early 20s at the time, said she felt ‘bombarded’ by messages, with Bretherton asking details about her sex life and requesting photos of her when she was away on a city break. She told the tribunal she felt ‘controlled and manipulated’ by Bretherton, who admitted he ‘misjudged the situation’.

A third complainant told the tribunal that Bretherton put an ice cube down her back during a night out at a club following a firm event.

Bretherton left Gowling to be a banking and finance partner with virtual firm gunnercooke, advising on complex structured and secured real estate finance transactions. He graduated through the University of Exeter and BPP Law School.

In a statement following the tribunal’s misconduct findings, Gowling chief executive David Fennell said: ‘We are appalled that some of our people had to endure such unacceptable attention from a colleague. Mr Bretherton’s behaviour was abhorrent and bears no relation to the values which Gowling WLG believes in and stands for.

‘Our priority is our people and in particular those individuals that stood up for what is right and reported Mr Bretherton. We will continue to support them and to encourage anyone experiencing unacceptable behaviour of any type to come forward.’

A spokesperson for gunnercook confirmed Bretherton is no longer a partner at the firm, adding: 'We want to make it clear that there has been no evidence of inappropriate behaviour at our firm, and we have, and always will, take action to protect and safeguard our people, policies and our values.'

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