A leading British authority on regulation says that solicitors face being prevented from correcting their own mistakes, following a landmark ruling by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT).

Writing in the British Law Society Gazette, barrister Gregory Treverton-Jones says law firms will be compelled to send clients to another firm if they identify an error, rather than put things right at their own expense.

This will prove more expensive and “drag matters out” says Treverton-Jones, who co-authored The Solicitor’s Handbook.

Remedy mistake

The British SDT ruled that a firm which tried to remedy its mistake, in agreement with its insurers, must pay a £5,000 fine and adjudication costs of £26,850, (Howell Jones LLP 11846-2018). 

Treverton-Jones writes: “The Solicitors’ Regulatory Authority does not seem to consider that an own-interest conflict can be cured by the sort of pragmatic solution that has been in place for decades. The only winners will be professional negligence lawyers.

“I have serious doubts as to the correctness of the decision and serious concerns as to its potential implications,” he writes.