Muhammad Azfar Ahmad
Allegation / charges
Breaches, Code of Conduct for Solicitors, REL's & RFL's 2019, SRA Principles 2019
Findings — machine-extracted (anthropic-batch:claude-opus-4-8); verify against the decision
The Respondent, an immigration solicitor, was secretly recorded by Daily Mail undercover operatives posing as an irregular migrant seeking to regularise his status. The SRA alleged he suggested a false asylum narrative (fear for life) and a sham marriage to regulate immigration status. The Tribunal found both allegations not proved on the balance of probabilities. The pleaded wording required proof that conduct 'should' (not merely 'could') occur. The Tribunal found the operatives led/prompted the conversation contrary to their brief, the Respondent gave repeated caveats that asylum for Indian nationals was 'very weak' and 'not in his hands,' and his replies were conditional/illustrative responses rather than prescriptive directions. Translation reliability was a significant concern given multi-stage Punjabi-to-Urdu-to-English rendering and audibility issues. While some conduct was ill-judged (failure to correct Khalistan narrative; blurring professional boundaries in marriage discussion), it did not meet the alleged threshold. Allegations dismissed; no breaches considered. Respondent's costs application refused as the high bar for adverse costs against the regulator was not met.
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