Heather Frances Head

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

Heather Frances Head, a legal secretary (non-solicitor) at Taylor Poole solicitors, deliberately misled the firm and later the Sheriff's Office using a forged Abbey National memorandum and a false London Scottish Bank letter regarding conveyancing monies owed on her own property purchase. She accepted a criminal caution. The Tribunal found the allegations substantiated (and admitted), found she had acted in a seriously dishonest fashion, and made an order under section 43 preventing solicitors from employing or remunerating her without Law Society permission. She was ordered to pay costs of £3,300.

Duties found breached:

• Not mislead third parties or opponents
• Handle inadvertently received material

Aggravating factors:

• Seriously dishonest conduct to serve her own ends
• Use of forged/fake documents
• Accepted a criminal caution for obtaining property by deception and making/using a false instrument
• Earlier denials made to the Law Society contrary to later admissions

Mitigating factors:

• Admitted all allegations
• Monies subsequently repaid to the firm
• Claimed actions were not premeditated and undertaken while in a stressed state / suffered a breakdown
• Stated no intention to work in a solicitor's office again