Tribunal refuses restoration after finding seriousness of misconduct remains decisive
A former solicitor struck off more than 15 years ago after the discovery of a major client account shortage has failed in an attempt to be restored to the profession.
In a recent decision, the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal rejected an application by Horace Okeroghene Onobrakpeya to be returned to the roll of solicitors following disciplinary findings dating back to 2008.
The applicant had been admitted to the roll in January 2000 and was practising as one of three partners at South Bank Solicitors in London when regulatory concerns emerged. In October 2007, a forensic investigation carried out on behalf of the then Law Society of England and Wales uncovered serious irregularities in the firm’s client accounts.
The investigation revealed a minimum cash shortage of £428,546 linked to the misuse of client funds in a conveyancing transaction. Because of incomplete and inaccurate accounting records, investigators were unable to establish the full extent of the deficit, which they said could have been as high as £1.7m.
Following disciplinary proceedings, the tribunal struck Onobrakpeya off the roll in May 2008.
More than a decade later, he sought restoration to the profession under the statutory procedure that allows struck-off solicitors to apply to return to practice in exceptional circumstances.
The application was opposed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, which argued that the seriousness of the original misconduct meant restoration would be inconsistent with maintaining public confidence in the profession.
The tribunal agreed, concluding that the threshold for readmission had not been met.
Applications for restoration require the tribunal to consider whether the applicant has demonstrated genuine rehabilitation and whether allowing them to practise again would maintain trust in the integrity of the profession. Even where many years have passed, the tribunal must assess the gravity of the original misconduct and its impact on public confidence.
In this case, the tribunal noted that the misconduct leading to the strike-off involved significant misuse of client money and serious accounting failures within the firm. Such conduct, it said, went to the heart of the duties expected of solicitors handling client funds.
Given the scale of the shortage and the circumstances in which it arose, the tribunal concluded that restoration would not be appropriate.
The ruling leaves the original strike-off in place and confirms that the applicant will not be permitted to return to the roll of solicitors.