A solicitor who used £500,000 of money in his firm’s client account to feed his gambling addiction has been struck off. Over a period of nearly five years, Kam Cheung Mak – who had been a partner at East London firm MKM Solicitors – made 204 transfers totalling £511,618 from client to office account and […]
Continue readingA dishonest solicitor who forged documents and stole clients’ mortgage payments after taking charge of a law firm has been jailed for seven years and six months. Andrew John Davies, 34, was jailed at Bolton Crown Court having pleaded guilty to 42 charges including fraud, forgery and money laundering at an earlier hearing. Davies embarked […]
Continue readingLaw firms handling claims over mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI) are charging clients more than both the level the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) deems reasonable and the cap that will shortly be imposed on them by government, research by the regulator has found. The SRA said that its research – based on a review of […]
Continue readingA sole practitioner solicitor who misappropriated over £170,000 from four vulnerable clients in her role as court-appointed deputy has been struck off by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal. The tribunal found that in the case of two clients who died, Ms Lowe knew from the date of their death that she was no longer a deputy […]
Continue readingA personal injury solicitor has admitted paying unlawful referral fees for claims and running cases which clients had not authorised. Andrew Clinch dealt with numerous personal injury claims where purported victims of road traffic accidents had either not signed the relevant forms or expressly said they did not wish to pursue compensation. The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal […]
Continue readingThe Solicitors Regulation Authority has struck off a solicitor who stole more than £300,000 of his elderly and disabled client’s money using a secret bank account. Stephen John Acres was found to have committed the “outrageous plundering” of his client’s assets in a particularly “deplorable” case of dishonest conduct. The tribunal heard that, as well […]
Continue readingA former managing partner of a Bradford solicitors’ firm, who was sent to prison for creating a fictitious business to fraudulently claim thousands of pounds from the Legal Aid Agency, has been struck off. Between September 2010 and October 2014, he conspired to create a sham company – known as Legal Support Services (LSS) – […]
Continue readingThe High Court has demanded that further cuts be made to costs of over £1.6m claimed by Eversheds solicitors for acting in a property dispute. Mrs Justice Slade said the amount claimed by national law firm Eversheds from their client Mark Harrison was 4.8 times higher than the firm’s first estimate and about 2.9 times […]
Continue readingThe Court of Appeal reduced a litigant’s legal costs from £415,000 (claimed) to £110,000 (allowed), ruling that the litigant had made excessive use of solicitors to advise on proceedings. Lord Justice Davis ruled that the sum claimed, of over £415,000 to be “eye-watering.” (Source – Legal Loop website)
Continue readingLaw firms may be required to publish price information on their websites next year. The Solicitors Regulation Authority confirmed its long-held ambition to ensure consumers have more information about their potential legal services provider. Any changes would be implemented no earlier than autumn next year. The SRA suggests firms do this only for certain types […]
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