Britain’s Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has today published a review showing that some law firms need to do more to guard against the risk of strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs).
The review points out that solicitors play an important role and, as officers of the court, are expected to behave in a way that protects the public interest, and helps the legal system to work for all.
Abusive litigation
Bringing cases that are an abuse of the litigation process, or using improper or abusive litigation techniques, can harm clients and other parties, and undermine trust in the legal profession, the review adds.
“We have already issued guidance on conduct in disputes to all firms and individuals we regulate who give dispute resolution and pre-action advice,” it continues.
“Solicitors are not simply 'hired guns'. That means they should not bring cases which are not properly arguable, bring excessive or oppressive proceedings, or act in a way which could mislead or take advantage of others during proceedings. Managing potential conflicts is also an essential element of maintaining legal professional ethics.
“We issued a warning notice about a particular type of abusive litigation, known as strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs). These cases typically centre around privacy and defamation laws where an individual's reputation is under scrutiny.
"They often involve wealthy individuals or public figures threatening journalists with legal proceedings to discourage public discourse or action,” the review says.
SLAPPs have been scrutinised following the conflict in Ukraine and sanctions on Russia, with significant concerns being raised about solicitors making meritless claims on behalf of oligarchs to stifle public discourse about corruption or money-laundering.
The review adds that, prior to the conflict in Ukraine, few reports about SLAPPs were received. There has now been a significant increase, however, with around 40 open investigations.
The regulator warns that it will act where it sees serious breaches of principles and codes of conduct.
“Solicitors play an important role in reporting matters which they believe are capable of amounting to a serious breach of our rules.
"This is especially important with SLAPPs, where the purpose of legal threats is often to silence critics or pressure supposedly weaker parties to settle before reaching court, resulting in a fear of speaking out,” the review says.
Risks
Solicitors must stay fully up to date about the risks SLAPPs pose – both so they can avoid bringing a SLAPP and report them if they see other firms using them, the regulator warns.
While many fee earners demonstrated a good general understanding of SLAPPs, knowledge and training varied, with some believing that a SLAPP could only be brought against an individual.
Fee earners were also warned to avoid unnecessarily labelling correspondence as 'strictly private and confidential', 'not for publication' or 'without prejudice', without proper reasons.
Eleven heads of department and six fee earners told the review that there were occasions where the firm had to tell a claimant they could not pursue litigation because it was abusive or unfair.