By Lucy Caulkett-
An experienced solicitor whose firm held funds from her holiday home sideline has been fined £15,000 by a tribunal. The solicitor whose identity has been withheld for legal reasons given by the Solicitor Fraud Authority (SFA). She also paid £10,600 in solicitor costs.
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal heard how Valerie Walton-Knowles used her firm’s credit card machine to receive monies from customers of her caravan and bed and breakfast business. She supplied funds going into the client bank account.
This practice ceased after the Solicitors Regulation Authority opened an investigation into the firm in April 2016. The regulator concluded that the solicitor was aware of the risks involved because it was not possible to accurately verify that all entries on the ledger for the other business did not include any money from legal clients.
The 58 year old family solicitor had practiced on her own account since 1995 under the style of Brooke Williams Solicitors Limited based in York. She had been the firm’s compliance officer for legal practice from 2012.
Over a four year period Walton-Knowles allowed more than £100,000 to be paid into and held in her firm’s client bank account without any underlying transaction. The money was connected to her caravan park and bed and breakfast business. The Serious Fraud Authority(SRA) accused the solicitor of failing to establish and maintain proper accounting systems and proper controls over those systems.
Walton-Knowles admitted the allegations without dispute. She admitted reckless conduct and accepted the firm was using the client bank account as a banking facility. She also admitted knowledge that her actions were not permitted by SRA accounts rules.
Although no complaints were made by customers in relation to the Further, no complaints were made by clients in relation to her actions, but this did not justify them at all. She successfully passed her legal aid audit without any qualifications on the contract.
She stressed she had not tried to hide any matters from the SRA, and had taken notice of all the advice received from the regulator and implemented in full its recommendations. As well as the fine, she agreed to pay the £10,800 SRA costs.