Disgraced war crimes lawyer has bankruptcy extended

The disgraced Birmingham solicitor struck off after being found guilty of misconduct for his role in an Iraq war crimes inquiry that collapsed has had his bankruptcy extended after being discovered trying to dispose of nearly £0.5m of assets to family members.

Phil Shiner, who headed up city-based Public Interest Lawyers Ltd, could not afford to pay for legal representation at a Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal last February and declared himself bankrupt the following month.

The tribunal had ordered the solicitor to pay interim costs of £250,000 after he admitted nine counts of acting without integrity and one of acting recklessly, in relation to his conduct during the Al-Sweady inquiry which alleged the unlawful killing and ill treatment of Iraqi nationals by British troops in Iraq in 2004.

The prosecution brought by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), found allegations of misconduct when representing claims against British soldiers – including acting dishonestly – proven to the criminal standard of proof.

Now the Insolvency Service has extended the bankruptcy after revealing Shiner gifted away nearly half-a-million pounds worth of assets to family members before declaring himself bankrupt and unable to pay creditors.

Shiner (61), of Selly Park, Birmingham, gave an undertaking to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy, to be bound for six years, by the restrictions beginning on February 23, 2018.

Restrictions arising from a bankruptcy last for 12 months but the IS said Shiner’s had been extended to six years following his unacceptable behaviour when he tried to deny paying his creditors, including liabilities arising in connection with Public Interest Lawyers, by gifting his assets to his family.

Shiner petitioned for his own bankruptcy in March 2017 declaring that he had no money to pay his creditors following the closure of Public Interest Lawyers, which was his law practice.

However, the IS said that in the six months leading up to his petition, Shiner made a series of transactions to rid himself of his assets by gifting them to family members and to Public Interest Lawyers Ltd.

He began by selling a commercial property for £245,000, which he paid to the law practice.

He then transferred ownership of his house worth £300,000 with no mortgage, along with two guitars he valued at £3,500 and other artwork, to a family trust in December 2016. The terms of the trust allowed Shiner to remain living in the property, despite not owning it.

And in January 2017, Shiner sold a second commercial property for £305,000 and again, paid the proceeds into Public Interest Lawyers’ funds.

Shiner then transferred from Public Interest Lawyer Ltd’s accounts £94,908 into a personal pension fund and a further £74,485 was placed into a trust account to help maintain his family. The remainder was allegedly used to pay creditors owed money by Public Interest Lawyers Ltd.

The IS said that unfortunately for Shiner, upon receiving the bankruptcy order the Official Receiver was able to spot these activities and had since been able to recover £483,538. This includes selling Shiner’s home, which the Official Receiver is in the process of doing.

Following Shiner’s offer of a bankruptcy restrictions undertaking and what the Official Receiver has been able to recover, the total outstanding amount owed in Shiner’s bankruptcy estate comes in at just under £6.5m.

Following the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal Shiner was struck off the roll of solicitors and Public Interest Lawyers Ltd was wound up in December 2017 after the Official Receiver petitioned to place the firm into liquidation.

Justin Dionne, Official Receiver from the Insolvency Service, said: “Shiner thought he could be clever by giving away his assets to his family members so that when he declared himself bankrupt there wasn’t anything to pay his creditors with.

“Sadly he was mistaken as all his activities were easily spotted and we have since been able to recover a substantial amount of money, even if it was in his family’s name.

“Shiner’s activities should serve as a lesson and act as a deterrent to him and others from acting in the same way.”