Stephen John Acres

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

Stephen John Acres, a solicitor and former partner at Stanley De Leon, acted as attorney under two LPAs for an elderly, vulnerable client (MG). The SDT found numerous allegations proved beyond reasonable doubt, including using client money to pay a personal debt, improperly executing LPAs, abandoning his attorney role to an unknown third party (DT), fabricating attendance notes and care records to charge for work not done, entering a deed of variation gifting £225,000 without instructions, concealing a NatWest account and misappropriating funds for his own benefit, and repeatedly failing to cooperate with the OPG and SRA. The Tribunal made express findings of dishonesty across most allegations. Describing it as one of the most deplorable cases of dishonest plundering of a vulnerable client's assets, the Tribunal struck the Respondent off the Roll and ordered him to pay costs of £70,000 (reduced from the £74,034.79 claimed).

Duties found breached:

• Proper basis for allegations
• No improper communication with the court
• No taking unfair advantage
• No conflict between current clients
• Handle inadvertently received material
• No improper use of client money
• No baseless or threatened misconduct report

Aggravating factors:

• Numerous findings of dishonesty
• Conduct was planned, deliberate and calculated
• Motivated by personal financial gain
• Gross breach of trust as attorney for an elderly, vulnerable client
• Fabrication of documents (over a year's worth of attendance notes and an attendance note to conceal lack of instructions) to conceal dishonesty
• Repeated and continuous dishonest conduct including repeated use of debit card and cash withdrawals
• Took advantage of an elderly and extremely vulnerable client
• Experienced solicitor fully aware of his obligations
• Displayed no insight and sought to evade the proceedings
• Previous disciplinary finding in 2012 (fine of £2,500 and costs)