The UK Law Society Gazette
Deputy Master Marzec said Jaqueline Samuels could not prove that Christopher Henry had written the three reviews, and in any case could not prove that they caused her business serious harm.
The first review had appeared two weeks after the legal ombudsman rejected a complaint from Henry about his service from Samuels. Henry had also made an unsuccessful complaint to the Solicitors Regulation Authority, although the regulator had reminded the solicitor to ensure correspondence ‘remains professional going forwards’.
The first Google review on Samuels’ business profile had said: ‘Awful law firm – the principle, Jackie Samuels was awful to deal with. An unfriendly and unhelpful individual – AVOID AVOID AVOID.’ The author signed off as ‘Chris H’.
The third post, which described Samuels as ‘rude, abrasive, unhelpful and bitter’ was written by someone calling themselves ‘P R’. Samuels told the court these were the initials of an associate of Henry.
