Ares Connect

Davenport Lyons were the first in a long line of lawyers to realize just how lucrative it would be to target people with pay-up-or-else letters threatening legal action for alleged file sharing. Way back in 2007 they first came into the public eye with a landmark case against a woman accused of illegal file sharing and it was not long before other firms of lawyers saw the benefits of pursuing similar claims.

Unfortunately for Davenport Lyons, documents have now come to light which prove they were fully aware all along that the evidence they were using against people was flimsy at best and very unlikely to stand up to serious scrutiny. Of course the cases were never intended to be taken to court as the simple generic letters were designed to scare innocent people into paying up rather than risk expensive litigation.

The Solicitors Regulatory Panel has now decided that Davenport Lyons has breached the code of conduct expected of solicitors and as such has referred the case against two of Davenport Lyons partners to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal next year. The hearing will go ahead in May and will last approximately 7 days.