The Law Society surveyed 16,000 of its members in August about the risks they face at work—prompted by escalating fears of violence after 39 law firms and immigration advice organisations were targeted during the summer 2024 riots. Some 286 solicitors responded to the survey.
The resulting report, Threats to solicitors, was published this week. The risks mean some firms have implemented no-lone worker policies so nobody is ever left in the office alone or decided not to allow their staff to work without security present.
Almost half of the 286 solicitors responding said they or their firm received a threat in the past 12 months. Some 27% reported personally receiving a threat in the past 12 months, with some experiencing multiple incidents.
More than a third feel their personal safety is threatened because of their chosen profession. Among those who have experienced threats, more than two in five have considered leaving the profession.
A solicitor working in social welfare said: ‘I have been threatened to have my house set on fire, my family harmed and also told they hoped I got cancer and suffered an awful death.’ Another told of a ‘threat to travel to our office and burn it down’.
A property solicitor faced a ‘threat of physical violence by a client who waited in the firm car park’, while a witness in a childcare hearing ‘jumped out of the witness box and across the front bench to try to attack’ another solicitor.
The report noted there has been a steady rise in the level of threats experienced, with 29% of respondents observing an increase in the past three to four years, rising to 35% in the past one to two years.
Most threats were made verbally, by email or on social media. Some respondents reported being stalked and harassed while receiving written threats.
The increase in threats against lawyers is not unique to this country—in 2024, the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE) found over 57% of lawyers have been the victims of threatening behaviour or aggression at least once in the last two or three years. In response, the Council of Europe has adopted the Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer.
Law Society president Mark Evans urged the government to ‘demonstrate its support’ by ratifying the Convention.
Evans said: ‘This research shows that abuse, aggression and intimidation towards solicitors is alarmingly commonplace.
‘If solicitors cannot go about providing a valuable service to the public without fear of being targeted, we are all harmed. We will continue to speak out against damaging rhetoric, to increase understanding of our members’ crucial work benefitting society and the economy, and to strengthen the support we provide to solicitors under threat.’
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