Drove there while over the alcohol limit, according to SRA decision
A trainee solicitor has been told he can no longer work in the legal profession after turning up to represent a client at a police station with cocaine.
William Mawdsley, who at the time was completing his training contract at national outfit Hine Solicitors, was convicted at Wiltshire Magistrates Court of possession of a class A drug, cocaine, on 19 April 2018, according to a disciplinary decision published by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).
The rookie solicitor was also convicted of driving a motor vehicle with excess alcohol and possession of a class B drug, cannabis and cannabis resin.
The regulator’s notice states: “During his employment Mr Mawdsley attended a police station as a police station representative. While there he was breathalysed and found to be over the limit, having driven there. He also had cocaine in his possession.”
Mawdsley was just five months into his training contract when he was dismissed by the firm in January 2018. He was given a written rebuke and made the subject of a section 43 order, which prevents him from working in a law firm without prior permission from the SRA. Mawdsley was also ordered to pay costs of £600. The regulator confirmed he was not currently working for an authorised firm.