Gareth Riddiford
Employee
659682

Decision - Employee-related decision

Outcome: Control of non-qualified staff (Section 43 / Section 99 order)

Outcome date: 11 December 2019

Published date: 17 January 2020

Firm details

Firm or organisation at time of matters giving rise to outcome

Name: KPHP Limited

Address(es): The Old Town Hall, Lapwing Lane, Didsbury, Manchester, Lancashire, M20 2NR

Firm ID: 567741

Outcome details

This outcome was reached by SRA decision.

Decision details

Mr Riddiford, who is not a solicitor, was involved in a legal practice and has occasioned or been a party to an act or default which involved such conduct on his part that it is undesirable for him to be involved in a legal practice in any of the ways described in the order below.

Reasons/basis

During his employment with KPHP Limited, Mr Riddiford took £5,000 earmarked for the firm's costs to pay three clients in settlement of their claim. He did this because he had failed to submit the schedule of loss in respect of their claim and the defendant was threatening to have the matter struck out. Mr Riddiford did not want his clients or his employer to know he had failed to comply with the court order. It was found that Mr Riddiford’s conduct was dishonest.

An order pursuant to section 43(2) of the Solicitors Act 1974 was made in relation to Mr Riddiford and he was ordered to pay the SRA's costs of £600 in investigating this matter.

It is not known whether Mr Riddiford is currently working at, or for, an SRA regulated practice.

Other information

To make an order pursuant to section 43 that with effect from the date of the letter or email notifying Mr Riddiford of this decision:

1. no solicitor shall employ or remunerate him in connection with his/her practice as a solicitor;
2. no employee of a solicitor shall employ or remunerate him in connection with the solicitor's practice;
3. no recognised body shall employ or remunerate him;
4. no manager or employee of a recognised body shall employ or remunerate him in connection with the business of that body;
5. no recognised body or manager or employee of such a body shall permit him to be a manager of the body; and
6. no recognised body or manager or employee of such a body shall permit him to have an interest in the body

except in accordance with a Society permission.