‘Serious’ and ‘persisting’ misconduct
A junior solicitor has been struck off after repeatedly misleading clients about the progress of their probate cases.
Rachael Catherine Worthington (formerly known as Rachel Catherine William) qualified as a solicitor at Irwin Mitchell in September 2018 and specialised in contentious probate. Over the course of her employment, however, serious issues arose with how she handled several client matters, ultimately leading to her being struck off.
Concerns first came to light in late 2021 when Worthington was on maternity leave. Calls from a client prompted an internal review by the firm, which uncovered troubling irregularities in her casework. An audit of 50 of her files revealed “matters of concern” in 15 of them, with a disciplinary tribunal focusing on four matters deemed to involve “serious” and “persisting” misconduct.
One of these cases involved Worthington falsely telling a client that their probate claim had been filed in court. She then compounded the deception by providing fake updates on the supposed progress of the claim. She then deleted relevant records from the firm’s case management system and omitted the case from her supervision lists, concealing the fact that no claim had ever been issued.
In another matter her failure to meet a court-imposed deadline for filing a probate claim led to an adverse costs order against her clients. Despite this, Worthington continued to mislead both her client and the opposing solicitors, falsely asserting that proceedings had been issued and were ongoing.
Irwin Mitchell’s investigation revealed significant misconduct which led to her resignation in February 2022, before the firm referred the case to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). The SRA’s investigation confirmed breaches of honesty, integrity, and public trust principles under the Solicitors Code of Conduct.
In mitigation, which was not adopted or endorsed by the tribunal, Worthington argued that she was under “an inexplicable amount of pressure” as a newly qualified solicitor “without adequate supervision”. She described working in a “toxic environment”, with a workload that often exceeded 300% of her monthly chargeable targets, forcing her to work “18-hour days and seven days a week”.
Despite admitting her wrongdoing, the SDT determined that striking Worthington off the roll was the only proportionate sanction given the severity of her misconduct and the financial losses incurred by clients. “She breached the trust placed in her as a solicitor and misled clients, opposing solicitors, and insurers. Such conduct seriously undermines public confidence in the legal profession,” the tribunal said.
Irwin Mitchell has since compensated affected clients and ceased acting in two cases due to conflicts of interest. Worthington was also ordered to pay £3,500 in investigation costs.
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