A senior solicitor who was convicted of raping a teenager in 2013 has been struck off the roll. Mark Reginald Stuart Hodge, admitted in 1991, was sentenced in 2015 to 11 years imprisonment after being convicted of two counts of rape, two counts of sexual assault and one count of sexual assault on a female by penetration.
He served five and a half years in custody before being released on licence.
At the time of the offence, Hodge was a solicitor, owner and member of Continuum Corporate Lawyers in Birmingham. He was also a solicitor, beneficial shareholder, member and director at Continuum Nominees Limited.
In an agreed outcome, the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal found that Hodge was ‘solely culpable for his deplorable conduct’ against ‘Person A’.
‘The fact that Person A was known to the respondent demonstrates that his conduct was a flagrant breach of trust,’ it said. ‘The respondent had direct control over Person A who was vulnerable and whom he sexually assaulted in her own home after having celebrated her 18th birthday with her and Person B with whom she lived.’
