Diana Joan Marten

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

The Respondent, a commercial property solicitor at MFG Solicitors LLP, missed the 21-day deadline for registering a Legal Charge to Paragon Bank at Companies House. To conceal this, she falsified the date on the Legal Charge by changing it from 3 December 2018 to 23 December 2018 so it would appear to meet the registration timescale. She admitted the allegation in full and admitted dishonesty. The Tribunal, dealing with the matter on the papers via an agreed outcome, found no exceptional circumstances and struck her off the Roll, ordering costs of £2,500.

Duties found breached:

• Non-discriminatory acceptance and cab-rank

Aggravating factors:

• Conduct was dishonest
• Concealed her failure to register the charge by altering the document date
• Conduct benefitted the Respondent to the detriment of her clients
• Put clients' interests at risk of financial ramifications

Mitigating factors:

• Self-reported to the SRA on 8 February 2019
• Cooperated with the SRA investigation and SDT proceedings
• Genuine insight, remorse and open admissions
• Exemplary and unblemished disciplinary history over 32 years (mitigation not agreed by the SRA)