header-logo header-logo

21 March 2025 / Clare Hughes-Williams , Megan Hill
Issue: 8109 / Categories: Features , Profession , Dispute resolution
printer mail-detail

SLAPP happy?

211929
Where to draw the line between aggressive litigation tactics & misconduct? Clare Hughes-Williams & Megan Hill explore a recent tribunal decision
  • Sets out the facts of Solicitors Regulation Authority v Hurst, which considered the publication of Nadhim Zahawi’s tax affairs.
  • Highlights the need for meaningful supervision of junior lawyers as the distinction between working hard for a client and committing misconduct can be difficult to identify.

Strategic lawsuits against public participation—or SLAPPs, as they are often referred to—remain a hot topic for law firms, given the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA’s) continuing focus on addressing what it sees as the abusive litigation tactics deployed by some litigators.

In what was widely reported to be the first prosecution on this issue, the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) handed down its decision in Solicitors Regulation Authority v Hurst (Case no 12612/2024) on 20 December 2024.

The case

Mr Hurst had been instructed by former minister, Nadhim Zahawi (pictured), to consider the legal position in relation to articles that had been published about

To access this full article please fill the form below.
All fields are mandatory unless marked as 'Optional'.
If you already a subscriber to New Law Journal, please login here

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Bell Yard Kysen—Liz Giles

Bell Yard Kysen—Liz Giles

Bell Yard Kysen appoints senior legal PR and ex-government communications adviser, Liz Giles

Clarke Willmott—Lee Edwards

Clarke Willmott—Lee Edwards

Clarke Willmott boosts Southampton commercial property team with addition of partner Lee Edwards

Lime Solicitors—four promotions

Lime Solicitors—four promotions

Lime Solicitors announces four promotions

NEWS
The Attorney General, Ellie Reeves KC MP, and Solicitor General, Andy Slaughter KC MP, marked the 25th anniversary of Pro Bono Week by joining lawyers, charities, students and parliamentarians at events celebrating voluntary legal work
An indemnity costs battle with a £20m gap could reopen an important question: what weight should an approved budget carry?
The Environment Agency can prosecute offences beyond environmental legislation where proceedings support its statutory functions, the Divisional Court has confirmed
Should a conviction stand when a later ruling reveals that the law underpinning it was wrong? The answer exposes a clash between finality and justice
Witness evidence can be compromised by AI before a solicitor sees the draft, leaving safeguards focused on authorship incomplete
back-to-top-scroll