Convicted solicitor removed from roll after abusing position to take £14k of client money
A solicitor convicted of siphoning client compensation into his own bank account has been struck off the Roll. The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) removed Stewart Christian Costello from the profession after his Crown Court conviction for two counts of fraud by abuse of position.
Costello, admitted in 2006, pleaded guilty at Taunton Crown Court on 9 April 2014 to misappropriating client funds. On 2 May 2014, the court sentenced him to 14 months’ imprisonment on each count, to run concurrently. The compensation had been obtained for personal injury clients and then moved, without authority, from client account to Costello’s personal account. The firm later repaid the affected clients; Costello did not.
Sitting on 16 September 2015, the SDT found that his conduct breached three core duties under the SRA Principles 2011: upholding the rule of law and proper administration of justice (Principle 1), acting with integrity (Principle 2), and maintaining public trust in the provision of legal services (Principle 6). The Tribunal relied on the certified conviction and the underlying facts as conclusive proof.
The disciplinary hearing proceeded in Costello’s absence. He had been personally served with the case papers in March 2015 but did not engage with the proceedings or file an Answer. On the morning of the hearing he emailed to say he would not attend. The Tribunal considered the criteria for proceeding without him and decided an adjournment would not secure his attendance.
The SDT set out the simple anatomy of the fraud. Twice, Costello arranged transfers totalling £14,000 from client account into his personal account. Sentencing remarks noted a wider context of gambling activity between March and September 2013, involving bets exceeding half a million pounds and losses of about £20,000. The Recorder accepted that addiction formed part of the background but stressed the gravity of the breach of trust. The court described it as “difficult to think of a higher trust than between a solicitor and their client.”
Embed from Getty ImagesIn mitigation to the Tribunal, Costello referred by email to treatment for a compulsive disorder completed in July 2015 and stated he posed no ongoing risk. The SDT acknowledged his previous good character before the criminal case, his guilty plea, and efforts at treatment. However, it found no genuine insight in his correspondence into the harm caused to clients, the firm, or the wider profession.
Applying its Sanctions Guidance, the Tribunal emphasised that dishonesty, particularly involving client money, almost invariably leads to strike-off save in exceptional circumstances. It concluded that the public’s confidence requires a clear response where a solicitor abuses access to client funds. Costello’s addiction did not meet the threshold for an exceptional departure. The Tribunal therefore ordered that Stewart Christian Costello be struck off the Roll of Solicitors.
On costs, the Applicant sought recovery of preparation and hearing expenses. The SDT scrutinised the schedule and summarily assessed £2,500 payable by Costello. While noting his claim to be on Jobseeker’s Allowance, the Tribunal declined to defer enforcement, observing he had not provided evidence of means despite advance directions inviting him to do so.
The decision draws a firm line under a case the Tribunal characterised as “of the utmost seriousness”. By abusing his position and diverting client money, Costello violated the foundations of professional trust. The strike-off order removes him from practice and signals the profession’s zero tolerance of dishonesty with client funds.
Order: Strike off; costs fixed at £2,500, payable by the Respondent