Sally Gandon, an experienced solicitor with a 44-year career, has been struck off following an agreement with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) after admitting to forging a divorce client’s signature, as reported by The Law Society Gazette.
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal confirmed the sanction after a one-day hearing last month.
Gandon, who previously maintained an unblemished professional record, accepted the decision but characterized the incident as an isolated lapse of judgment.
At the time of the misconduct, Gandon was a consultant with Surrey law firm Goodhand & Forsythe, advising her client on a tenancy agreement for the marital home. The client initially signed a notice of severance in March 2020, but Gandon later discovered the document had been misplaced.
Rather than informing the client, Gandon prepared a replacement document and falsified her client’s signature before sending it to the client’s husband. The husband noticed the forgery and refused to sign, subsequently filing a complaint with the SRA.
Gandon explained that her actions were driven by an attempt to support her emotionally distressed client and expressed her sincere regret. She apologized to the client, who continued to work with the firm during the divorce proceedings. Goodhand & Forsythe took no disciplinary action against Gandon, and her consultancy ended in 2022.
The SRA described her misconduct as “deliberate and planned to conceal the fact the original document was lost”. The tribunal, citing her responsibility and control over the situation, determined that striking her off the roll was the only appropriate sanction.
Gandon acknowledged her error, attributing her actions to significant personal and emotional pressures at the time. Along with her removal from the profession, she agreed to pay £3,304 in costs.
