KJD law assistant barred after admitting she forged urgent sale paperwork instead of asking for help
A legal assistant who forged client signatures on urgent property documents has been banned from the profession after telling regulators she “panicked” and didn’t know what else to do.
Gemma Stanton, a post-completion assistant at KJD Law in Lancashire, traced the signatures of both clients and a fee earner to make it appear as though the sale paperwork had been properly completed. She admitted her actions were dishonest and accepted she should no longer work in legal practice.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has now issued an order banning Stanton—who is not a qualified solicitor—from working at any other regulated law firm without the SRA’s permission.
The incident occurred while Stanton was assisting with the sale of a property that included two separate parcels of land. The client had correctly signed one transfer form (TR1), but due to an internal oversight, the second TR1 for the additional parcel wasn’t sent for signature.
After the sale completed, the buyer’s solicitor requested the second signed TR1. Stanton was instructed by a fee earner to send the document to the client. Instead, she returned it to the buyer’s solicitor with forged signatures, having traced them to match the first TR1.
But the discrepancy didn’t go unnoticed. The fee earner spotted that the signatures looked different on each form and raised the alarm. Stanton admitted immediately that she had traced them.
Embed from Getty ImagesShe was suspended on the spot and dismissed two weeks later.
Speaking to the SRA, Stanton acknowledged the severity of her misconduct. She said she had panicked because of the time-sensitive nature of the transaction and accepted she should have asked for help rather than taking matters into her own hands.
“I accept that what I did was dishonest,” she said. “I did not intend to cause harm but acted out of panic. I now know I should have asked for advice and support.”
No long-term harm was caused, as the falsified TR1 was withdrawn the same day it was spotted.
Still, the SRA deemed her conduct serious enough to justify a full employment ban within the legal sector unless she receives explicit permission to return.
The case highlights the pressure many junior legal staff face in fast-paced environments, particularly when dealing with property transactions and client deadlines. But regulators made it clear that even under pressure, honesty cannot be compromised.
The SRA’s ruling stated: “While no harm was ultimately caused, the behaviour was clearly dishonest and incompatible with employment in legal practice. The public rightly expects high standards from those working in law.”
The ruling is a reminder that mistakes—even avoidable ones—must be handled with transparency, not shortcuts. Stanton’s decision to forge signatures, even in haste, breached the fundamental principles of integrity expected across all levels of legal work.
