'We are all in the dark': Regulator vows to act after PM Law closes suddenly
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is demanding answers from bosses at a Yorkshire-based law firm which closed its doors suddenly due to “regulatory issues”.
On Monday morning, clients of the Sheffield-headquartered PM Law group found that its offices across Yorkshire and Cumbria had been shut without warning.
These include an office in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, where a sign attached to the door says: “Due to regulatory matters, the PM Group businesses carried out within this building can no longer trade.”
The BBC also reported that a sign on the door of law firm Butterworths' Kendal branch, which is owned by PM Group, also said it could "no longer trade".
A client of the firm told BBC Cumbria: “It's shocking when you get told that your solicitor has shut down and nobody knows anything, and you don't know where your paperwork is or what's happening with it.”
In a post on Linkedin, a former Yorkshire-based solicitor at PM Law said: “We are all in the dark as to what has happened and have lost our jobs overnight and without warning.”
According to a recent post on Linkedin, PM Law Group, which was formed in 1990, has grown to a combined group of more than 600 people across a number of specialist businesses.
In a notice on its website, the Solicitors Regulation Authority said: “We understand that Butterworths / PM Law Limited has closed suddenly and not in a manner we would expect.
"We are in contact with the firm and will take appropriate action to make sure clients are protected.
“We expect that those affected should be updated soon. There is no further information we can provide at this time.
"We will update our website when we have more information. Thank you for your understanding.”
The SRA stressed that law firms have to close in a “specific way” in accordance with its guidance. This guidance states that when a law firm closes down its practice, this should be planned well in advance, where possible.
Larger firms may need to prepare a detailed plan and should have a contingency plan for closure, merger or sale in the event of serious difficulties arising, the guidance says.
“The interests of clients are critical, but disorderly closure of a law practice can also cause adverse impact on the courts and others dealing with the firm, such as those on the other side of a case or transaction.”
The guidelines also state: “You (the law firm) must inform all clients for whom you are currently acting of your closure so that they can make informed decisions and understand the protection afforded to them where appropriate.”
The SRA told The Yorkshire Post that clearly the apparent closure hadn’t happened in accordance with the guidance, “so we have been in contact with the firm to make sure that client interests can be protected”.
The branches of PM Law the SRA is dealing with are: PM Law Limited, PM Property Lawyers Limited, PM Law (Specialist Claims) Limited, Proddow Mackay Limited, Proddow Mackay Solicitors LLP, Proddow Mackay (Conveyancing) Limited, 3M Law Limited, Linkfield Claims Service Limited, Butterworths Solicitors LLP, Autonet Law LLP and WB Pennine Solicitors LLP.
The Yorkshire Post has made repeated attempts to contact PM Law by telephone and email.