Anjum Shahzad

Findings — machine-extracted (anthropic-batch:claude-opus-4-8); verify against the decision

Mr Anjum Shahzad, a solicitor admitted in 2001, failed to disclose an ongoing SRA AML investigation on a Call Declaration Form to Lincoln's Inn (January 2022) and failed to disclose the SRA investigation and resulting RSA to the Inns Conduct Committee until February 2023. He admitted the allegations, which were characterised as manifest incompetence/inadvertent (not deliberate or dishonest). Allegations under Principles were narrowed and the matter was resolved on the papers by Agreed Outcome. The Tribunal found low culpability and no harm, imposed a Reprimand, and ordered £5,000 costs (reduced from £24,400 plus VAT due to means).

Duties found breached:

• Not mislead the court
• Full disclosure on ex parte applications
• Not mislead third parties or opponents

Mitigating factors:

• Misconduct was not deliberate but the result of carelessness/manifest incompetence
• Respondent volunteered/corrected the information
• Low culpability
• No identifiable harm caused and negligible risk of harm
• Genuine insight displayed
• Low likelihood of future similar misconduct
• SRA investigation arose from Respondent's own voluntary self-report; he remedied AML deficiencies
• Respondent had serious health issues (triple heart bypass in January 2019) and stressful divorce proceedings
• Adverse financial impact of Covid pandemic and being overburdened after his wife/practice manager left