SRA prosecutes Buss Murton solicitor Alexander Lee over alleged conflict of interest in trustee role
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has referred Tunbridge Wells solicitor Alexander William Bruce Lee to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) over allegations of acting amid an apparent conflict of interest while serving as both legal adviser and company director.
According to the SRA’s published decision, the tribunal has certified that there is a case to answer against Lee, who was a partner at Buss Murton Law LLP at the time of the alleged misconduct. The case will be heard by the SDT, which is independent of the regulator and will determine whether professional misconduct occurred after considering all the evidence.
The allegations concern Lee’s role between 31 March 2018 and 18 April 2019, during which time he was a director of Global Security Trustees Limited, a company established to act as a security trustee protecting the interests of bondholders. The SRA alleges that Lee’s position created an obvious or significant risk of conflict of interest given that he had previously and subsequently acted as a partner in Buss Murton Law LLP for the lender involved in the same arrangements.
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The SRA’s referral states that Lee served as the sole director of Global Security Trustees Limited between 31 March and 1 September 2018, and later held a 50% ownership stake in the company from around 1 November 2018.
The regulator contends that this dual involvement — advising the lender through his law firm while simultaneously holding a controlling position in the trustee company — raised serious ethical concerns under the Solicitors Code of Conduct, which requires solicitors to avoid conflicts between their own interests and those of clients.
At this stage, the allegations are unproven, and Lee remains entitled to contest the charges before the tribunal. The SDT will determine whether his conduct breached professional standards once it has reviewed the full evidence presented by both sides.
Buss Murton Law LLP, the firm at which Lee was employed at the time of the events, is a well-established Kent practice based at Wallside House, Tunbridge Wells. The matter concerns Lee’s conduct prior to the firm’s transition to its current structure as Buss Murton Law (South East) Limited.
In its statement accompanying the referral, the SRA said: “This notification relates to a decision to prosecute before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal. The tribunal is independent of the SRA and will reach its own decision after considering all the evidence, including any evidence put forward by the solicitor. The tribunal has certified that there is a case to answer.”
No date has yet been listed for the hearing. If the tribunal finds the allegations proven, potential sanctions could include a fine, suspension, or strike-off from the roll of solicitors.
The case underscores the regulator’s ongoing focus on conflicts of interest within legal practice — an area the SRA has identified as one of the most common sources of disciplinary proceedings, particularly where solicitors hold external directorships or financial interests that intersect with client relationships.
The full judgment and outcome of the hearing will be published on the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal website once proceedings are concluded.