The case of the lawyer who was too polite - and got his firm in trouble with the SRA

The case of the lawyer who was too polite – and got his firm in trouble with the SRA

Top law firm Dentons was accused of breaking money laundering regulations thanks to a lawyer who didn’t check a client’s source of funds

Dentons, an international law firm, was charged by the SRA with breaching UK money-laundering regulations because one of its lawyers was too polite to ask a politically connected banker from a former Soviet republic – a politically exposed person (PEP) from a high risk jurisdiction – how he got his money.

Dentons merged with Salans and inherited its clients. When this banker wanted to buy a bank in the UK, his lawyer (formerly from Salans) didn’t ask the banker where his wealth came from in case it might be impolite, according to the SRA, who interviewed the lawyer.

The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) ultimately dismissed the allegations against Dentons. It accepted Denton’s argument that the SRA’s allegations of insufficient checks on the client’s source of wealth and funds was not based on money laundering regulations that were in place at the time.

The SRA is appealing that decision which means the High Court will ultimately rule on whether Dentons’ breach of the AML rules is professional misconduct.

All this means that Dentons is still in hot water. Read all about the case here:

Download How Dentons got caught up in AML failings

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“In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear.”