Solicitors found guilty of breaching code of conduct
A TRIBUNAL has ruled that six South Yorkshire solicitors deliberately breached a code of conduct to collect £32m in fees from miners’ compensation claims.
The London hearing ruled that an agreement between Barnsley-based law firm Raleys and Zuko Legal – a “claims farm” – to take on 19,000 claims, some of which were the secured through cold-calling, was against the professional code of conduct.
Partner Ian Frith was suspended for four years, David Barber for two years and Jonathan Markham for six months.
Junior partners Carol Gill, Jim Gladman, and Katherine Richards, were each fined £10,000. All six solicitors had denied any wrongdoing.
The solicitors were also ordered to pay costs estimated at more than £800,000, with an interim payment of £300,000 to be paid within 28 days.
Mr Firth must pay 50%, Mr Barber 25% and Mr Markham 15%. The remaining 10% will be split equally between the three junior partners.
Tribunal chairman David Leverton said that every partner knew they were breaching the code by making the agreement.
He said that staff at Raleys had made the deal because it was the practice’s “last chance to make a huge amount of money” if they had abided by the code.
The Solicitors’ Disciplinary Tribunal was also told the partners compromised their independence and integrity through their close ties with the National Union of Mine Workers (NUM).
The hearing was told the NUM recommended that Yorkshire members seeking compensation for illnesses used Raleys. A percentage of the workers’ payouts then went back to the NUM.
Gregory Treverton-Jones QC, representing the solicitors, said the lawyers genuinely believed the NUM agreement to be in their clients’ best interests, and that they had acted in good faith.
The tribunal heard the firm earned £72m overall for its handling of claims for respiratory disease and vibration white finger.
Mr Treverton-Jones said all the money earned came from legitimate fees and that the practice was investigated by the Law Society in 2000 for similar issues but exonerated.
The tribunal ruled Mr Firth bore a “heavy responsibility” in the case followed by Mr Barber and Mr Markham.
Mr Leverton said that the case was a “tragedy for Raleys”.
He added: “Years of good service to their community and their clients has been thrown away with their previous reputation.”
