Michael Wright

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

Michael Wright, a solicitor's clerk employed as a financial services adviser at Robert Leach Palmer & Co, was the subject of a Law Society application for a Section 43 order following a Financial Services Monitoring Unit report revealing substantial and widespread breaches of the Solicitors Investment Business Rules 1990 and Solicitors Practice Rules 1990. Although the responsible partner (Mr Leach) had dishonestly misappropriated client funds and later took his own life, the Tribunal expressly noted it was not represented that the respondent was complicit in that dishonesty. The respondent did not appear but admitted the breaches by letter. The Tribunal made a Section 43 order controlling his future employment within the profession and ordered him to pay costs of £1,618.09.

Duties found breached:

• Disclose adverse law to the court
• No improper communication with the court
• No conflict between current clients

Aggravating factors:

• Poor standard of compliance over a lengthy period (1987 to May 1994)
• Comprehensive breaches previously drawn to his attention in 1992 with compliance advice given, yet breaches continued
• Held himself out as a financial services expert and was in charge of the department
• Acting as a tied agent where advice was not independent

Mitigating factors:

• Not complicit in Mr Leach's dishonest misappropriation of clients' funds
• Admitted breach of Rule 12 from the outset and had reported it to the Solicitors Complaints Bureau
• Not responsible for the firm's overall compliance
• Suffered substantial personal financial loss following Mr Leach's suicide