Boss of collapsed Sheffield firm SSB Law faces disciplinary tribunal for 'professional misconduct'
Up to 1,400 clients were hit with up to £40,000 in legal costs after claims for defective insulation collapsed
The boss of a collapsed Sheffield law firm has been referred to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal to face allegations of professional misconduct.
Jeremy Brooke, chief executive of SSB Law, could be suspended or struck off and face an unlimited fine if the allegations are proven.
The decision was made by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and comes 18 months after the company collapsed with the loss of 192 jobs and debts of £205m.
In June, the SRA banned two SSB Law directors for acting “unethically, dishonestly, recklessly and without integrity, and had breached multiple rules.”
Wesley Bower and Steven Westwood are banned from holding any job in a law firm regulated by the SRA - the most serious sanction it can issue.
SSB Law, based at Victoria Quays, specialised in ‘no win no fee’ compensation claims for cavity wall insulation failures.
Up to 1,400 clients were hit with up to £40,000 in legal costs after claims for defective cavity wall insulation collapsed - despite being told they were 'no win no fee' cases.
In some cases claims were abandoned when a cavity wall firm fought back. And clients were left on the hook for legal costs when specialist insurance proved invalid.
SSB Law collapsed in January 2024.
At the time, the Insurance Fraud Bureau said ‘claims farming’ was costing insurers millions, which was being passed on to consumers.
Jon Radford, of the IFB, said: "Claims farming is a common issue where unscrupulous companies will encourage otherwise innocent individuals to make false or exaggerated claims, or to provide misleading information, for what would otherwise be a genuine claim.”