Probate practicioner to face tribunal after transferring £40,000 of client money into own account
A probate practitioner is to face the Solicitor’s Disciplinary Tribunal on fifteen charges including breaking rules on client money, and transferring nearly £40,000 into his office account from clients despite a court stating he was only entitled to £7,922.46. Michael John Elsdon’s West Sussex based ABS firm, Sai-Donne Limited, was closed by the Solicitor’s Regulation […]
Rogue will writers jailed for defrauding elderly clients
Two men who conned pensioners out of thousands of pounds as part of an unregulated wills and financial services business have been jailed. Michael John Wild, 52, and Robert Henry Holly, 44 ran Yorkshire Asset Protection (YAP) which offered wills, powers of attorney, funeral plan purchases and property protection trusts. However a jury at Leeds […]
Will writing conmen who targeted York pensioners told to expect jail
Two men who ran will writing firm Yorkshire Asset Protection have been told by a judge to expect jail time, after being found guilty of defrauding pensioners out of more than £30,000. Michael John Wild and Robert Henry Holly conned customers out of hundreds of pounds with false claims on their credentials, by not carrying […]
Solicitor jailed for taking £370,000 from dying client
A solicitor from Cheshire has been jailed for three years after taking £370,000 from a dying pensioner. Peter Taylor, who worked at wills, probate and estates planning practice Nightingales in Poynton, Cheshire, pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud and two counts of theft last week. The 65-year-old from Congleton wrote cheques to himself, took […]
Legal secretary jailed for forging £79,000 worth of cheques
A former legal secretary from Caerphilly in South Wales has been jailed for two and a half years for stealing nearly £80,000 from disabled clients. Dianne Spragg, 48, wrote 65 cheques to herself or online shopping companies while working at Cardiff firm Geldards to fund shopping sprees. Nearly £40,000 was taken from a scaffolder who […]
Solicitor jailed for large scale fraud
Solicitor Simon Armitage (65) of Baydale, Clyst St George, Devon, a conveyancing and probate specialist has been jailed for four years following a large scale fraud. A sole practitioner at the time, he fraudulently pocketed unsuspecting clients’ money over a period of four years between 2009 and 2013 and pilfered around £430,000 in total to […]
Fraud unravels all
The recent ruling by the UK Supreme Court to allow divorce settlements to be revisited by ex-spouses may yield more business for practitioners in its wake. Family law solicitors, will writers, probate practitioners and estate planners alike should take note of this recent ruling. Following recent cases of widely reported will disputes within families, these […]
What’s yours is mine (Will they, or won’t they?)
Yet another professional from the wills and probate industry has been jailed for stealing from their clients. Is there a way to stop this increasing burden on a deceased’s loved ones from happening? Who can people really trust in the profession? Let us know your thoughts on this issue in the comment section below. […]
Elderly victim lost life savings to ruthless couple
A couple from Alburgh, Norfolk were handed a prison sentence this month, after an elderly woman was conned out of her life savings of more than £280,000. Nadia Dervish, 48 and her partner Michael Kenevan, 45 ruthlessly and repeatedly targeted Peggy Byford over a period of over 10 years. Mrs Byford suffered from dementia and […]
Scam it!
With the recent changes to pensions giving people greater freedom of choice, with that comes the need to be more diligent than ever. In recent years pension scamming has increased, with recent figures revealed by City of London police showing that a staggering £9.1 million worth of scams have been reported between April and August […]
Tales of the unexpected
When most people think of a solicitor they relate them to trust and respect, which are integral when someone is choosing a professional to draft their will and manage their estate. Unfortunately this was not the case for those using solicitor Stephen Climo who was employed at Worcester-based firm Gaynor-Smith Owen (GSO). Stephen Climo, 50, […]
Take immediate action
With the newly enhanced efforts criminals go to in order to get their hands on valuable assets, it’s integral for any professional to remain adept in how to protect yourself as well as your business. The important thing to note when assessing risks is considering what firms are liable. The answer is…any firm. With modern […]
Baby boomers take no prisoners
The number of cases of baby boomers disputing wills and being prosecuted over attempts to defraud elderly relatives has increased by record numbers. Inter-family fraud has increased by 300% from £544,000 in the first quarter of 2014 up to £2.1 million in the same quarter in 2015 – the latest report from the KPMG fraud […]
Cautionary tale of the £600k, six year spending spree
A solicitor who stole more than £600,000 from elderly clients to fund a secret spending binge on prostitutes and adult chatlines, has been jailed for four years. A well respected figure in the suburb of Cheadle, Greater Manchester: solicitor, Andrew Taylor, 57, was treasurer of the local cricket club, chairman of the civic society judo […]
Solicitor stole from deceased estates to prop up failing business
John Irwin, a County Down solicitor, pleaded guilty earlier this month to three counts of fraud and three counts of false accounting from which he stole almost £94,000 from deceased clients. The offences, which took place between August 2007 and July 2012, involved three deceased males he was acting for in probate matters on behalf […]
Coates and Co probate employee charged with fraud
The latest court hearing for an employee of Coates and Co legal firm was held on 26th March, following the decision to charge the accused with fraud by abuse of position. Sussex Police were informed in 2014 that Emma Coates of the Selsey-based firm had allegedly acted on behalf of a deceased client to handle […]
Beware telephone scams, SRA warns
Don’t be duped into disclosing bank security information, the SRA is warning following reports of more firms being targeted by telephone con artists. The reports involve at least two incidents this month where telephone fraudsters posed as bank representatives. This follows on from four firms being targeted in November last year which prompted another SRA […]
Beware of bank details scam
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) are warning firms to be wary of scammers tricking them into disclosing bank security information over the telephone. Four firms have been targeted this way recently, and collectively have had £2 million taken from their accounts. The scammers gain the confidence of those they call – known as social engineering […]
Solicitor jailed after stealing £1 million from dead client’s estate
A former coroner has been sentenced to five years in prison, after stealing £1 million from a client’s estate, in order to save his diminishing law firm. John Owen became an executor of the will of local farmer, John Williams, and eventually became sole trustee following the death of the two other executors. Cardiff Crown […]
Autumn Update – Almost half of all reports to SRA On Bogus activity concern Identity Theft
On publishing their Autumn Update to the Risk Outlook the industry regulator states that they ‘remain concerned’ about the number of bogus law firms and risks that this poses. Identity theft has been at the industry fore from the get go this month with the SRA placing the threat and risk of Bogus Firms and […]
