Leigh Day is asking the Solicitors Regulation Authority to contribute to costs incurred by the law firm following its successful defence of misconduct allegations over claims that British soldiers in Iraq committed atrocities. The law firm applied to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal claiming £5 million towards its costs, estimated to be nearly £8 million. The firm, which was cleared on all of the 19 charges brought by the SRA, argue that the SRA 'over-prosecuted' and that there was no legal or factual basis for bringing the proceedings. The SRA opposes the application, arguing it was in the public interest.

Most expensive

The Leigh Day disciplinary case was the longest and the most expensive hearing of its kind. The 19 charges focused on Leigh Day’s alleged failure to adequately verify claims made by Iraqi clients of torture and murder by British troops, which the firm successfully rebutted. The judgment said: 'The tribunal rejected [the SRA’s] general contention that the respondents were the kind of people who put financial advantage above professional duty.'