Wenborne Weller & Spooner fined £4,879 and £600 costs after SRA AML compliance review
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has fined Wenborne Weller & Spooner Limited, a Leigh-on-Sea law firm, £4,879 after an investigation found serious breaches of anti-money laundering (AML) regulations. The firm was also ordered to pay £600 in investigation costs following a regulatory settlement agreement published on 21 October 2025.
Wenborne Weller & Spooner Limited, based at 84 Broadway, Leigh-on-Sea, was investigated following a desk-based review conducted by the SRA’s AML Proactive Supervision Team. The regulator identified repeated failures to maintain compliant AML documentation and procedures between July 2022 and March 2025, leaving the firm exposed to money-laundering risks.
The SRA found that during this period, the firm had not produced an appropriate Firm-Wide Risk Assessment (FWRA) as required by Regulation 18(2) of the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (MLRs 2017). Although the firm submitted risk-related documents when requested, these were deemed non-compliant due to insufficient detail across all required sections.
The regulator placed the firm on a compliance plan and required it to produce a fully compliant FWRA. A revised document was received on 28 March 2025, which the SRA later confirmed met the regulatory standard.
Embed from Getty Images
The investigation also revealed that Wenborne Weller & Spooner Limited failed to establish and maintain adequate policies, controls, and procedures (PCPs) to manage money-laundering risks, breaching Regulations 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) of the MLRs 2017. The firm’s original PCPs lacked most of the mandatory elements required under the regulations. Following further guidance from the SRA, the firm submitted a new AML manual containing revised PCPs in March 2025, which was accepted as compliant.
The SRA found that the firm’s conduct breached multiple professional standards under the SRA Principles 2019 and the SRA Code of Conduct for Firms 2019, including the requirement to act in a way that upholds public trust and to maintain effective governance systems ensuring compliance with all applicable regulations.
In its decision, the SRA said the firm’s failures showed a disregard for statutory obligations and had the potential to cause harm by facilitating dubious transactions. However, it acknowledged that there was no evidence of actual harm to clients or third parties and that the firm had since rectified its shortcomings.
The regulator determined that a fine was appropriate and proportionate, noting that the firm should have been aware of its obligations since beginning operations in 2022, especially as a significant portion of its work falls within the scope of AML regulations. The SRA said: “It was incumbent on the firm to meet the requirements set out in the MLRs 2017. The public would expect a firm of solicitors to comply with its legal and regulatory obligations as a bare minimum.”
The SRA classified the conduct as ‘more serious’ and assessed the potential harm as low, resulting in a combined score of five under its penalty guidance. This placed the fine in Band B, corresponding to between 0.4% and 1.2% of the firm’s annual domestic turnover. A basic penalty of £5,421 was calculated, later reduced by ten percent to £4,879 to reflect the firm’s cooperation, remedial action, and lack of financial gain from the misconduct.
The SRA confirmed that the fine was imposed under Section 95 of the Legal Services Act 2007, which requires all disciplinary outcomes for licensed bodies to be published. The regulator said publication was mandatory to ensure transparency and public accountability.
In its agreement with the SRA, Wenborne Weller & Spooner Limited accepted responsibility for the breaches and confirmed it would not act in any way inconsistent with the settlement. The firm has since achieved full compliance with the MLRs 2017 and now operates under updated AML procedures and controls.
The SRA said the outcome serves as a reminder that firms must maintain robust risk assessments and policies to meet their anti-money laundering obligations and uphold public trust in the legal profession.