Jonathan Peter Durkin
Allegation / charges
Breaches, Code of Conduct for Solicitors, REL's & RFL's 2019, Recklessness, SRA Principles 2011, SRA Principles 2019
Findings — machine-extracted (anthropic-batch:claude-opus-4-8); verify against the decision
The Respondent, managing partner of the Liverpool office of Prosperity Law LLP, created a Client Care Letter with appended Terms of Business on 30 January 2023 and backdated it to appear as though created/sent on 22 September 2020. He admitted breaches of Principles 2 and 5 and paragraph 1.4 of the Code, and accepted his conduct was reckless and lacked integrity, but denied dishonesty (maintaining he genuinely believed he was recreating a document that previously existed). The SRA was granted leave to withdraw the dishonesty allegation. The Tribunal rejected the initial proposed 3-month suspension as insufficient and the parties agreed a 12-month suspension. The Tribunal approved this and ordered costs of £24,885.
Duties found breached:
Aggravating factors:
- Conduct was reckless
- Position of seniority as a partner, Notary Public, and solicitor of over 10 years' experience
Mitigating factors:
- No actual loss to or impact on Client A
- Single instance of misconduct
- No prior regulatory history
- Early admissions and acceptance of breaches, demonstrating contrition and insight
- Accepted responsibility for his conduct
- Stressed, overworked, and dealing with personal issues at the relevant time
Codes & rules applied
Duties engaged
- Act only on proper, lawful instructions
- Advise on alternatives, settlement and outcome
- Avoid wasting the court's time
- Cease acting on client perjury or disobedience
- Client-care and engagement terms
- Client confidentiality
- Competence
- Complaints procedure and handling
- Comply with and respect court orders
- Comply with rules of foreign jurisdictions
- Continuity and handover of representation
- Cooperate openly with regulators
- Costs and fee transparency to client
- Diligence and timeliness
- Disclose adverse law to the court
- Disclose material information to client
- Disclose referrals, commissions and benefits
- Fair dealing with unrepresented parties
- Fair, reasonable and lawful fees
- Full disclosure on ex parte applications
- Good faith and courtesy to colleagues
- Handle inadvertently received material
- Hold a current practising certificate
- Honour professional undertakings
- Keep client informed and respond promptly
- Maintain competence and CPD
- Manage conflict arising mid-matter
- No abuse of process or coercive powers
- No acting against a former client
- No baseless or threatened misconduct report
- No conflict between current clients
- No direct dealing with represented party
- No improper benefit, loan or bequest
- No improper communication with the court
- No improper fee-sharing or partnership
- No improper questioning of witnesses
- No improper solicitation or touting
- Non-discriminatory acceptance and cab-rank
- No obstruction or victimisation of reporters
- No own-interest conflict
- No payments to witnesses on evidence
- No personal opinion or familiarity with court
- No prejudicial publicity for pending cases
- No standing bail or surety for client
- No taking unfair advantage
- No tampering with or coaching witnesses
- Not mislead the court
- Not mislead third parties or opponents
- Not misrepresent regulated status
- Pay instructed practitioners and agents
- Professional indemnity insurance
- Proper basis for allegations
- Proper termination and return of instructions
- Prosecutorial duty of disclosure
- Prosecutorial fairness and impartiality
- Protect capacity and vulnerable clients
- Protect legal professional privilege
- Report serious misconduct of others
- Safeguard documents and limit liens
- Self-report to the regulator
- Truthful, non-misleading advertising