Unregistered barrister Mark Lorrell was ordered to be suspended from practice for two years and five months by an independent disciplinary tribunal at a hearing which concluded on 13 November, following charges of professional misconduct brought by the Bar Standards Board (BSB). The suspension will expire on 7 December 2020. The sanction takes into account that Mr Lorrell has not practised as a barrister since 6 July 2018 following the BSB invoking the interim suspension procedure.
The tribunal’s decision comes after Mr Lorrell, who is dual qualified as a solicitor and as a barrister, was found to have committed professional misconduct by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal at two hearings in 2016 and 2018. Mr Lorrell was found to have breached the Solicitors’ Accounts Rules, and to have acted for two clients in circumstances which amounted to a conflict of interest. The 2018 decision resulted in Mr Lorrell being struck off the solicitors’ roll but this was later reduced to two years’ suspension from practice on appeal to the High Court in April 2019.
Mr Lorrell also failed to report to the BSB that the disciplinary action had been taken against him by the Solicitors Regulation Authority in 2016.
The tribunal found that Mr Lorrell engaged in conduct which was likely to diminish public confidence in the legal profession and in the administration of justice, and that he failed to act with integrity.
Commenting on the order to suspend Sara Jagger, BSB Director of Legal and Enforcement said: "The tribunal’s decision to suspend Mr Lorrell shows the serious consequences that can result from a barrister being found in breach of the rules of another regulator”.
The tribunal’s decision is open to appeal.
ENDS
Notes to editors
About Mark Lorrell
Mark Lorrell was called to the Bar of England and Wales by Lincoln’s Inn in November 1999.
About disciplinary tribunals
The appointment, operation, and decisions (including sentencing) of disciplinary tribunal panels are performed by the Bar Tribunals and Adjudication Service (BTAS). BTAS is run independently of the Bar Standards Board, the barristers' regulator. The BSB is responsible for bringing charges of professional misconduct against barristers, which BTAS tribunal panels then adjudicate.
About the Bar Standards Board
Our mission is to regulate barristers and specialised legal services businesses in England and Wales in the public interest. For more information about what we do visit: http://bit.ly/1gwui8t
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