Solicitors: Are Agreed Outcomes the way to go?
If your matter is referred to the Solicitor’s Disciplinary Tribunal and the Tribunal has certified a case to answer, then as well as complying with the Directions it is always important to consider whether it is possible to enter into an Agreed Outcome.
An Agreed Outcome is a settlement reached between the SRA and the Solicitor, where the parties agree on the allegations and sanctions imposed in order to dispose of the investigation. The agreed facts, allegations and outcome are then documented, and in the majority of cases published onto the SDT and SRA’s website.
Rule 25 of the Solicitors (Disciplinary Proceedings) Rules 2019 (“SDPR”) makes provision in respect of applications for Agreed Outcomes.
Under Rule 25(1) SDPR the parties may up to 28 days before the substantive hearing of an application (unless the Tribunal directs otherwise) submit to the Tribunal an Agreed Outcome Proposal for approval by the Tribunal.
The benefits of entering into an Agreed Outcome are:
- Early resolution - not everyone wants their day at the Tribunal and would prefer to settle the matter before a substantive hearing is needed. Furthermore, depending on when an Agreed Outcome is entered into, the matter can be resolved early on, rather than waiting several months for a substantive hearing.
- Control over what is or is not published - within the Judgment, the Tribunal panel are responsible for drafting and publishing the Judgment and the facts that are enclosed. But where an Agreed Outcome is entered into both the Respondent and Applicant (Solicitors Regulation Authority) can negotiate the contents of the Agreed Outcome, which therefore provides the Respondent with the ability to have input into the published document and the allegations that they are admitting or denying.
- Certainty as to Sanction - this of course is dependent on negotiations, but the Respondent will be able to have a degree of involvement as to what their sanction will be. Whereas at the substantive hearing, the sanction is completely out of their control.
- Costs effectiveness - early resolution will mean that all parties incur less costs, which in turn will mean that any costs payable by the Respondent will be lower. Of course, if the matter proceeds to a substantive hearing, not only will the Respondent be liable for their own legal fees, they may also incur the significant costs of the SRA. Where an Agreed Outcome is rejected by the SRA, if at the Substantive hearing a lower or equal sanction is imposed, the Respondent might be in a better position to dispute the SRA’s costs, on the basis that the Agreed Outcome they proposed was similar to the eventual outcome, and therefore the extra SRA costs should have been avoided.
It is important to note that the Tribunal is not bound by an Agreed Outcome proposal, even if both parties are agreed. The Tribunal will consider the Agreed Outcome and if they are not satisfied with the proposal, they can either indicate to the parties what they believe an appropriate sanction is or they will fix the matter for a further Case Management Hearing and will provide the parties with a Memorandum setting out the further information or clarification required before the Case Management Hearing.
The Regulatory department at Saunders Law have acted for many Solicitors in proposing an Agreed Outcome, some of which have been approved by the Tribunal. On occasion, our Agreed Outcomes have been amended due to the Tribunal believing the proposal that we negotiated would be too lenient, even though the SRA felt it was proportionate.
If you are a Solicitor and are being investigated by the SRA or have already been referred to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal, please get in touch with our Regulatory team here