Crooked solicitor banned over 147 client-to-office transfers, £111k hole

SDT strikes off Denis Charles Wynn for years of client account abuses and rule breaches

A veteran solicitor has been struck off after the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) found he orchestrated a years-long pattern of improper transfers from client account and failed to remedy a six-figure shortfall.

Denis Charles Wynn, admitted in 1975 and principal of Denis Wynn & Co, made 147 transfers totalling £97,828.58 from client to office account between October 2011 and January 2015 which were not allocated to any client ledger. The tribunal held the withdrawals breached the SRA Accounts Rules and Principles, and were dishonest by the standards of ordinary, honest people.

An investigation began after a qualified accountant’s report raised alarms. A Forensic Investigation Officer inspected the firm’s books in February 2015 and later reported that, as at 31 December 2014, there was a minimum cash shortage on client account of £111,253.38. The figure was expressed as a minimum because records were so poor that an accurate list of client liabilities could not be compiled. The firm was intervened into on 1 May 2015; the shortage persisted at intervention.

Wynn had been formally notified in November 2014 of a then-identified shortfall of more than £58,000. Despite his obligation to remedy breaches promptly, he did not replace the missing funds. By the time of the hearing, the SRA had paid out £394,956.63 from the Compensation Fund to clients of the firm, with the final deficit to be confirmed once the intervention concludes.

Beyond the unallocated transfers, the tribunal found further rule breaches. On seven files between 2007 and 2015, Wynn took a total of £13,424.80 from client account without first delivering a bill or written notification of costs. On three probate matters he failed to return client monies or explain why they were being held, leaving cumulative balances of £84,318.79 sitting for over a year without movement or written justification.

Reconciliations were also defective. From December 2010 to January 2015, the required three-way comparisons between cashbook, bank, and client ledgers were not properly performed; differences were neither stated nor explained. Wynn further failed to file the accountant’s report for the year ending June 2014 by the December deadline.

Applying the Twinsectra dishonesty test, the SDT said taking clients’ money to prop up a practice is plainly dishonest. The frequency of the transfers, the extended time period, the one-way flow from client to office account, and the absence of repayment led “almost inevitably” to the conclusion that Wynn knew he was misusing client money. He admitted the underlying facts and, late in the day, accepted that what he had done was dishonest and wrong.

In mitigation, Wynn cited significant health issues, said he intended to put the money right, and described himself as an “old-fashioned” practitioner who tried to manage accounts without a bookkeeper. He had taken out equity release, part of which went on run-off cover, and told the tribunal he intended to repay the Compensation Fund. The SDT acknowledged his long, previously unblemished career, frank admissions and insight, but said the aggravating features were substantial: prolonged misuse of client money, large sums, and serious harm to the profession’s reputation.

Concluding that dishonesty involving client funds “will almost invariably” result in strike-off absent exceptional circumstances—and none were advanced—the tribunal ordered Wynn’s name be removed from the roll.

Costs were assessed at £14,000 after reductions. Given Wynn’s age, health, and uncertain equity position, the SDT directed that the costs order is not to be enforced without leave of the Tribunal, encouraging the parties to agree sensible terms while preserving the SRA’s ability to seek enforcement.