Believed she was helping emotionally distressed client
A solicitor with over forty-years experience has agreed to leave the profession after forging a client’s signature.
Divorce specialist Sally Gandon was working as a consultant at Surrey-based firm Goodhand & Forsythe when she advised her client on a tenancy agreement for the marital home.
Gandon required the client to sign a notice of severance, which was done in person at the firm’s office in March 2020. The document was also signed by the client’s husband.
Several months later, Gandon, who qualified in 1980, discovered the signed document had been misplaced and arranged for a new one to be created. According to the regulator, this included falsifying her client’s signature before sending it to the husband for his signature.
In July 2021, the firm received a complaint from the husband, who refused to sign the new notice of severance, stating he did not recognise the signature.
Gandon admitted to her actions, explaining that she genuinely believed she was helping her client, who was emotionally distressed at the time. She offered a sincere apology and stated that she was under significant personal and emotional pressure when the incident occurred.
The client continued to use the firm for divorce proceedings, and the firm chose not to take disciplinary action against Gandon. Her consultancy role with the firm ended in 2022.
The tribunal determined that a fine or suspension “did not adequately reflect the seriousness of the misconduct”, and concluded that striking Gandon from the roll was the only appropriate sanction.
The matter was dealt with through an agreed outcome, with Gandon ordered to pay £3,304 in costs.