Three solicitors who charged conveyancing clients for the firm’s indemnity insurance have been fined.
Partners of Crown Gate Law based in Birmingham have been reprimanded by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) for getting their clients to pay for indemnity insurance, as well as “variable sums” for filling out a simple standard form.
The SDT described how Davinderjit Singh, sole equity partner at Crown Gate Law Solicitors, went on holiday to India, leaving nobody qualified to supervise staff when officers from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) arrived for an unplanned visit.
It was also revealed that the SRA planned to close down the firm in December 2018, but held off “following representations” and eventually decided not to take that action after problems with the accounts were sorted out.
The firm, Crown Gate Law, opened in December 2013, the three partners, Mr Singh was admitted in 2008 and Kunal Ahir, qualified in 2012 eventually becoming a partner in December 2014 – and
Mukhtiar Singh Ubhi was admitted in 2005 and became a partner in 2016.
The firm charged conveyancing clients variable indemnity insurance contributions and fees for land transaction returns, a standard form that set out the stamp duty land tax payable and details of the transaction.
The SDT said:
“The firm’s insurance was an overhead of the firm. It was something the firm should pay as an overhead, rather than something clients should have to pay themselves.
“As [Mr Singh] conceded, all clients got the same level of indemnity cover and same protection.”
The only differences in the completed land transaction form were the address and value. They all took a similar amount of time to prepare “and did not, of themselves, protect the client,” the SDT noted.
But the defendants were quizzed as to why the firm was charging different amounts for different properties, Mr Singh said:
“If [the clients] don’t have any objections, what’s the problem with that?”
However, clients were told that this was a fixed disbursement.
Both of these charges were examples of clients not being treated properly, the SRA said.
The three solicitors acknowledged all the allegations made against them by the SRA. The SRA applied for costs of £53,800, but after investigations found the costs were excessive so the tribunal reduced to £35,000. Mr Singh was required to pay £25,500 of them and Mr Ahir and Mr Ubhi £4,725 each.
Article first appeared on Legal Futures
