Conflict of Interest summary PDF

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Conflict of Interest summary, The SRA Code of conduct:...

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Conflict of Interest The no conflict rule is made up of two principles. 1.

You must not put yourself in a position in which your own interests conflict with those of a client. This is called ‘own interest conflict’ in the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) Code of Conduct. 2. You should not put yourself in a position in which the interests of one client conflict with the interests of another client. The Code calls this a ‘client conflict’. The reason behind these principles in their basic form is readily understood; as a client, you would not want a solicitor acting for you who would be better off if you were to lose your case nor would you want a barrister to be arguing for you while also advising your opponents.

The SRA Code of conduct: The SRA Code of Conduct, Chapter 3, states: You can never act where there is a conflict, or a significant risk of conflict, between you and your client. If there is a conflict, or a significant risk of a conflict, between two or more current clients, you must not act for all or both of them unless the matter falls within the scope of the limited exceptions set out at Outcomes 3.6 or 3.7.… The Code goes further and requires solicitors to put in place steps to ensure that a conflict does not arise unintentionally The SRA Code of Conduct requires that: O(3.1) you have effective systems and controls in place to enable you to identify and assess potential conflicts of interests;

These systems should mean that a solicitor should not act for a client if the solicitor’s ability to act in the best interests of the client is impaired by certain interests. The SRA Code of Conduct requires that: O(3.2) your systems and controls for identifying own interest conflicts… enable you to assess all the relevant circumstances, including whether your ability as an individual, or that of anyone within your firm, to act in the best interests of the client(s), is impaired by: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

any financial interest; a personal relationship; the appointment of you, or a member of your firm or family, to public office; commercial relationships; or your employment.

The SRA Code of Conduct, Chapter 3, provides that: Acting in the following way(s) may tend to show that you have not achieved these outcomes and therefore not complied with the Principles: IB(3.8) in a personal capacity, selling to or buying from, lending to or borrowing from a client, unless the client has obtained independent legal advice; IB(3.9) advising a client to invest in a business, in which you have an interest which affects your ability to provide impartial advice.

Own interests The no conflict rule applies when the client’s interests conflict not only with those of the lawyer, but also with those of the lawyer’s family or someone with whom the solicitor has an intimate relationship. Key Case: Solicitors Regulation Authority v Dennison [2012] EWCA Civ 421 A firm of solicitors used a company to provide medical reports for clients. One of the partners in the firm owned one third of the shares in the company. He told neither his partners nor the clients. He made substantial profits from this arrangement. The SRA decided that he had to be struck off, given the dishonesty. The tribunal found it very serious and the Court of Appeal agreed with his suspension. What interests are covered? An easy issue arises if there is a conflict between a solicitor’s professional obligations and what a client was to do; then, clearly, the professional obligation must win out. An obvious example would be if a client were to instruct a lawyer to lie in court. The lawyer must refuse to do that. That is not the lawyer putting his or her personal beliefs above the client’s interests (which would be impermissible); rather, it is the lawyer putting his or her duty to the court and justice generally above the clients’ interests (which is permissible)....