Solicitor removed from roll after false academic claims in Bar pupillage application
A junior solicitor formerly employed at City law firm Slaughter and May has been struck off after the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) found he lied about his academic record in a pupillage application to Erskine Chambers.
The tribunal ruled that Maxmillian Alexander Knowles Campbell, 34, acted dishonestly by claiming in his application that he had achieved a “double starred first-class” degree from Cambridge University and won the “Slaughter and May Prize” for best overall performance. In fact, he had received a 2:1 and had not been awarded the prize.
The misconduct occurred in early 2022 while Mr Campbell was working as an associate at Slaughter and May. He submitted the application as part of an attempt to secure a pupillage at Erskine Chambers, a leading commercial set in London.
Following a second interview, members of the selection panel noted that Mr Campbell’s performance appeared inconsistent with his stated academic achievements. They decided to verify the details provided and contacted his listed referee at Cambridge, Dr Markus Gehring.
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The panel discovered that the email address supplied for Dr Gehring was incorrect. When Erskine Chambers reached him using the address listed on the university’s website, Dr Gehring confirmed that Mr Campbell had obtained a 2:1. Shortly afterwards, he sent another message stating that there appeared to have been “a case of mistaken identity” and forwarded an email from Mr Campbell claiming he “had been the victim of a practical joke” and had not applied for pupillage.
Erskine Chambers reported the matter to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), and Mr Campbell self-reported a week later. The chambers also notified Slaughter and May, where Mr Campbell subsequently resigned before the firm could complete its internal investigation. He told his employer that he had intended to apply for the Bar in 2023 but submitted “exploratory” applications in 2022 to gain interview experience.
Before the SDT, Mr Campbell admitted dishonesty but argued that exceptional circumstances should prevent him from being struck off. His defence relied on psychiatric evidence that he was suffering from a major depressive disorder at the time of the misconduct. The medical report concluded that his condition “significantly impaired his ability to think clearly and rationally” and to appreciate the morality of his actions.
Counsel for Mr Campbell submitted that he did not intend to gain financially or obtain a genuine pupillage, describing his actions as “a misguided attempt to escape his deteriorating personal and professional situation”. The tribunal heard that his behaviour was “irrational and self-defeating, and not the product of calculated deceit”.
However, the SDT rejected the argument that the solicitor’s mental health difficulties amounted to exceptional circumstances. It found that the dishonesty was sustained and deliberate. “The conduct was designed to gain advantage through the selection process,” the tribunal said. “It was not a momentary lapse or a reaction to immediate pressure, but a sustained course of conduct. While the tribunal acknowledged Mr Campbell’s mental health condition and accepted that he was suffering from a depressive illness at the relevant time, it did not find that this impairment was sufficient to reduce his culpability to the extent required.”
The tribunal concluded that dishonesty in these circumstances demanded the usual sanction of being struck off the Roll of Solicitors. It ordered Mr Campbell to pay £6,110 in costs.
Mr Campbell has not worked as a solicitor since leaving Slaughter and May in April 2022 and is currently based in New York.
The SDT’s decision was published following the SRA’s prosecution, which emphasised that dishonesty—particularly in applications related to professional advancement—undermines public trust and typically results in removal from the profession.