Irwin Mitchell Lawyer Shares His Insights Into Professional Disciplinary Tribunals

A leading UK employment lawyer has emphasised the increasing severity of penalties for sexual misconduct in professional disciplinary tribunals, saying the trend reflects a broader move across industries to recognise and address such behaviour more rigorously.

Shah Qureshi, who is head of the Employment and Professional Discipline team at Irwin Mitchell in London, made the comments in a recent interview with Law360 about the disbarment of Jo Sidhu, the former head of the Criminal Bar Association.

The article says Regulators like the Bar Standards Board (BSB), are actively investigating allegations and referring more cases to tribunals in response to the #MeToo movement.

It adds that the Solicitors Regulation Authority referred 11 cases of sexual misconduct to the Solicitor’s Disciplinary Tribunal in 2024.  Eight of those11 complaints resulted in the accused individual being suspended from practice or banned from the profession - more than the previous highof eight complaints in 2023.

Shah also says the FCA has also been taking a tougher stance on sexual misconduct within the financial sector. They have been more proactive in investigating and penalising such behaviour to uphold integrity and protect consumers.

Qureshi noted that tribunals now view sexual misconduct as one of the most serious transgressions a professional can commit.

"There is a huge move across all types of industries to recognise when sexual misconduct has occurred and then take action," he said.

He highlighted that tribunals are increasingly taking the victim's perspective into account and that the more serious the finding, the less mitigating factors will influence the final decision.

When speaking to the journalist Shah explained: “Tribunals are increasingly focused on the overarching objective of protecting the public, maintaining public confidence in the profession, and upholding proper professional standards. This means that while mitigating factors are still considered, they are balanced against the need to impose sanctions that reflect the seriousness of the misconduct and its impact on public trust.”

This means that while mitigating factors are still considered, they are balanced against the need to impose sanctions that reflect the seriousness of the misconduct and its impact on public trust.”

Qureshi also said that, sometimes, a professional sanctioned for sexual misconduct will appeal against the decision only to get a much stronger penalty.

He concluded by saying that there is also potential for more decisions to be appealed against by regulators because of their growing interest in workplace misconduct, adding that "There could be a trend in the future. This kind of misconduct, I can see it happening.”