Recent SRA Descisions

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has intervened in Hunter’s Solicitors LLP, a multi-office Home Counties firm headquartered in High Wycombe and operating across ten locations under several trading names – including Franklins Solicitors, Batemans, Colemans, and Grower Freeman. The intervention followed suspicion of dishonesty on the part of the

The Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision (OPBAS) has published its latest report on the 2024/25 supervisory period, finding that while Professional Body Supervisors (PBSs) are performing better than at any point since OPBAS was established in 2018, significant weaknesses remain – particularly around enforcement. OPBAS oversees 25

This list identifies jurisdictions with strategic deficiencies in their regimes to counter money laundering (ML), terrorist financing (TF), and proliferation financing (PF). These jurisdictions have made a high-level political commitment to work with the FATF and address the issues swiftly through agreed action plans. Being on the list means

Solicitor Alexander Gallagher (admitted 2016, self-employed advocate for LPC Law) arrived 30 minutes late to a 2pm hearing at Wandsworth County Court, leading to adjournment. To conceal his mistake, he sent a false attendance note claiming he had requested adjournment due to lack of instructions/documents, which was untrue. He

A London probate solicitor has been struck off following the discovery of extensive client account misappropriation totalling nearly £1.2 million. Andrew Brian Alexander Cooper, admitted in 2007 and based at Streathers Solicitors in Baker Street, was found by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal to have engaged in “deliberate and calculated”

Key Details: Firm: Scott-Moncrieff & Associates (ScoMo) – a virtual law firm run by former Law Society president Lucy Scott-Moncrieff Fine: £68,000 (plus £1,350 costs) Main Breach: Additional AML Failures: Regulatory Context: Current Status: Risk Assessment: SRA cited the risk that the client account “may have been used for

UK Finance has confirmed that, from June 2026, solicitors and conveyancers acting for mortgage lenders in residential property transactions will be charged £50 plus VAT per year per user to access the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook – the central set of instructions they must follow when acting on

Solicitor Struck Off for Online Document Certification Joe Morgan, a solicitor admitted in 2019 and director of Document Certifier Ltd, has been struck off by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal for certifying documents without seeing the originals. The Issue: Morgan ran a website where clients uploaded documents (such as bank

SRA’s Decisions The SRA is consulting on a return to mandatory submission of all accountants’ reports. The proposals include: Additional proposals on “more timely” information requirements for firms significantly changing their profile through mergers, acquisitions or sales will be published next year. Industry Response A recent SRA spot-check revealed

The Solicitors Regulation Authority has issued a stark warning that firms conducting reserved activities without authorisation and failing to address the implications of the Mazur judgment can expect enforcement action. The SRA’s Position In guidance issued last week, the regulator acknowledged there has been “concern and confusion” in the