David Ewan McNeish

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

David Ewan McNeish, a solicitor, was found guilty of professional misconduct on 26 April 2022 for failing to act in the best interests of Dr A, failing to ensure he had her authority, and failing to communicate effectively with her during a 2015 conveyancing purchase in which the title was taken in the sole name of her husband. He dealt only with the husband and never communicated directly/solely with Dr A. No dishonesty was found; the conduct was deemed thoughtless rather than deliberate. He was censured and found liable in expenses. At a separate compensation hearing on 31 May 2022, the Tribunal rejected claims for quantifiable loss but awarded Dr A £1,250 for inconvenience and distress, plus £250 expenses.

Duties found breached:

• Act only on proper, lawful instructions
• Competence
• No improper communication with the court
• No own-interest conflict

Aggravating factors:

• Failure to recognise that the change of instruction (title into sole name of Mr A) had potential detrimental consequences for Dr A while being more advantageous to Mr A, his point of contact

Mitigating factors:

• No previous disciplinary record over some 24/25 years in practice
• Conduct was thoughtless rather than a deliberate course of conduct
• Speed at which the transaction was concluded played a part
• Apology offered to Dr A for not advising independent legal advice