QUEEN'S BENCH DIVISION
Strand, London, WC2A 2LL |
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B e f o r e :
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(1) PQR (2) STU |
Claimants |
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- and - |
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PRESSDRAM LIMITED |
Defendant |
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Heather Rogers QC and Anthony Hudson (instructed by Davenport Lyons) for the Defendant
Michael McLaren QC (instructed by Bevan Brittan LLP) for the Solicitors Regulation Authority
Hearing date: 13 January 2009
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Crown Copyright ©
Mr Justice Eady :
"1. The fact that the Law Society Adjudication Panel found that [the Solicitor] acted in breach of Law Society rules on conflict of interests, or the fact that it decided to sanction or reprimand [the Solicitor], or the basis of and reasons for such sanction or reprimand, and the fact that the Law Society Appeal Panel upheld the findings of the Adjudication Panel in respect of [the Solicitor].
2. Any information or other matter which leads or may reasonably lead to the identification of [the Solicitor] or [the Firm] as the subjects of, or as being referred to in, the Opinion of the [SLCC] dated the 11th December 2008 following investigation of [the complainant's] complaint into the way in which the Law Society Consumer Complaints Service handled a complaint by [the complainant] against [the Firm] and [the Solicitor] and [a second solicitor in the Firm]."
"As regards gagging of the Opinion, as the Opinion is now issued there is very little – if anything – anyone could do to gag the Opinion. You are entitled to use it as you see fit and I am not aware of any limitations placed upon recipients as to how they might use the Opinion. It is of course possible that the Law Society will refuse to accept the SLCC's recommendations. While that is not something we would hope for, it would then be up to the SLCC to consider publishing a Notice making public the Law Society's refusal. If the SLCC considered this appropriate the Notice would anonymise the parties to the complaint, but the background to the complaint would be set out as would the SLCC's recommendations and the Law Society's reasons for refusing to accept the recommendations. … "