The Solicitors Regulation Authority has shut down three law firms in the space of a week in a spate of enforcement action.
As well as the high-profile intervention into PM Law and its various trading names, the regulator is also acting to protect clients of several smaller firms.
The cost of this flurry of activity has yet to be established but more details could emerge this week with the expected publication of the SRA’s latest business plan. This will set out solicitors’ annual fees and compensation fund contributions for November 2026 to October 2027.
The SRA intervened last week into Stalybridge firm Thompson & Cooke Ltd to protect the interests of clients and trustees. Companies House records show that the firm, which dates back almost 100 years, was subject to a court winding up order at the end of March following a petition from Premium Credit Limited.
Thompson & Cooke’s accounts for 2024/25 year are overdue. The most recent published accounts state that, as of March 2024, the firm had 18 staff and net assets of £869,000.
On the same day as the Thompson & Cooke intervention, the SRA shut down Ipswich firm Ross Coates Solicitors, as well as suspending the practising rights of Coates himself.
