English
Peter Daly
Cobleys Solicitors Ltd made adverse comments about me to my trial judge
I would not recommend Cobleys Solicitors Ltd. After losing confidence in my solicitor, Jonathan Mcilveen, who is a director of Cobleys, I found another firm willing to take over my publicly funded case. Cobleys opposed my transfer application in writing to the court. Cobleys called part of my account “disingenuous”, stated that I had been warned not to draft documents for my co-defendant, and alleged cancelled or shortened appointments because of “excessive alcohol consumption the night before” when opposing my transfer. The alcohol allegation they made answered my concern about the number of meetings I had had with them. Cobleys put these remarks before the judge who later presided over my trial. I felt deeply undermined by my own solicitors and cannot understand how a solicitor can continue to represent someone after making adverse remarks about them. The court refused the transfer. With my assets restrained and little realistic prospect of paying privately, I understood that giving up my representation order would leave me without publicly funded representation. I felt I had no realistic option but to stay with Cobleys, despite having lost confidence in them. The SRA considered the objection wording “moderate” and concluded that it was not improper. On separate advice given by Mr Mcilveen, the SRA identified a lack of clarity and potential for misunderstanding, and said the advice fell short of best practice. It nevertheless concluded that the matter was not sufficiently serious to justify regulatory action and took none. When I later requested my records, Cobleys confirmed that my paper file had been destroyed in September 2024 and acknowledged that this was premature under its own six-year retention policy. This further damaged my confidence in the firm’s handling of my case. I have also registered complaints about these matters with the Legal Ombudsman. The SRA's conclusions do not change my experience of the service: I remained with a firm I no longer trusted after it had put adverse remarks about me before my trial judge. I would never instruct Cobleys again.
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