The allegations against Jane MacLeod and Nicholas Gould are unproven and will be determined by the tribunal
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has referred two solicitors to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal as part of its investigation linked to the Post Office Horizon scandal.
The regulator said the cases concern conduct that took place after the main events of the scandal. It said referrals are made to the SDT where alleged misconduct is considered too serious to be dealt with through the SRA’s internal powers.
The two solicitors are Jane Elizabeth MacLeod, former general counsel at Post Office Ltd, and Nicholas Simon Barry Gould. The allegations against both solicitors are unproven and will be determined by the independent tribunal.
According to the SRA’s published notice, MacLeod was employed by Post Office Ltd as general counsel from 2015 to 2019. The tribunal has certified that there is a case to answer in respect of an allegation that, between 11 April 2024 and 31 July 2024, she failed to co-operate fully with the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry in relation to a request for her to give oral evidence. The allegation against MacLeod is subject to a hearing before the SDT and is as yet unproven.
Gould faces separate allegations relating to his work for two unnamed clients. The SRA said the tribunal had certified that there was a case to answer in respect of allegations that, between 13 May 2021 and April 2025, he failed to provide adequate information about likely overall costs, costs incurred and the legal work he or his firm was instructed to undertake.
It is also alleged that in January 2024 Gould raised, or caused to be raised, invoices or other notifications of costs without providing adequate justification for the amounts said to be payable by the clients.
The SRA further alleges that correspondence sent by Gould between 16 and 22 April 2024 to, or regarding, one of the clients was inappropriate or offensive, and that between April 2024 and April 2025 he breached his duty of confidentiality to that client.
The allegations against Gould are also subject to a hearing before the SDT and remain unproven. The SRA notice states that he was a partner at Aria Grace Law CIC until 7 February 2025 and has worked as an independent legal consultant at Impact Lawyers Ltd since 10 February 2025.
The SRA said: “We have referred two cases to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal. The cases refer to conduct that took place in the period after the main events of the Post Office Horizon scandal.
“Our wider investigations are still ongoing. This includes issues relating directly to the Horizon scandal, where we are working closely with the Inquiry team and the Metropolitan Police. We can and will act if we find that solicitors we regulate fail to meet our standards.”
The dates for the SDT hearings will be decided by the tribunal.