Disciplinary Record - Lucy Allen

Decision - Fined

Outcome: Fine

Outcome date: 3 March 2022

Published date: 14 April 2022

Firm details

Firm or organisation at time of matters giving rise to outcome

Name: LA Law Limited

Address(es): Formerly of 8th Floor Telecom House, 125-135 Preston Road, Brighton East Sussex BN1 6AF.

Firm ID: 596802

Outcome details

This outcome was reached by SRA decision.

Decision details

Decision by an Adjudicator. Reviewed by Adjudication Panel and findings amended. 

Financial penalty - £18,000

Costs - £4,818.75

Disqualified under S.99.

Reasons/basis

Lucy Allen, who is not a solicitor, was a director and owner of LA Law Limited, a licensed body, whose head office was at 8th Floor Telecom House, 125-135 Preston Road, Brighton, BN1 6AF, from 9 April 2013. LA Law Limited went into administration on 20 December 2017.

It was found that:

1. Ms Allen acted for personal injury clients where there was a significant risk of a conflict between her obligations to act in her clients’ best interests and her own financial interests, as her clients, unless they already had relevant insurance, had to take out a particular after the event (ATE) insurance policy for which her separate business received commission on policies taken out between March 2015 and January 2017.
2. Ms Allen failed to tell clients how much commission from the sale of ATE insurance policies she received through her separate business.
3. Ms Allen allowed money for professional disbursements to be paid into the office bank account and did not use the money to pay the professional or transfer it to the client bank account between 31 May 2017 and 17 November 2017.
4. Ms Allen failed to ensure proper governance of LA Law in that there were inadequate systems and controls for monitoring the financial stability of the firm. This resulted in the firm operating between June 2017 and December 2017 while it was in serious financial difficulties.

Ms Allen was found to have breached Principles 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10 of the SRA Principles 2011, rules 1.2, 14.1,17.1(b)(ii) and 17.1(c) of the SRA Accounts Rules 2011 and failed to have achieved outcomes 1.2, 3.4, and 7.4 of the SRA Code of Conduct 2011.

Ms Allen was made subject to a disqualification order under section 99 of the Legal Services Act 2007. This order prevents her from holding any of the following roles in a licensed body:

• Head of Legal Practice
• Head of Finance and Administration
• A manager
• An employee.

Ms Allen was directed to pay a financial penalty of £18,000 and costs of £4,818.75.