Human rights lawyer Philip Shiner showed a 'clear disregard for the rules' surrounding what solicitors can and cannot do and thought the ends of his actions would justify the means, a tribunal heard today.
On the first day of a hearing into allegations of misconduct, the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal heard that ‘deliberate and calculated lies’ were told to the Al Sweady inquiry into allegations of atrocities by British soldiers in the aftermath of the Iraq war.
Shiner faces 24 charges relating to his conduct. He did not attend today's hearing, which went ahead after a request for an adjournment was overrruled.
The tribunal heard that Shiner has admitted to charges including encouraging and authorising unsolicited direct approaches to potential clients arising out of the 2004 ‘battle of Danny Boy’ in Iraq. The individual he used was named in the tribunal today as Mazine Youniss.
Representing the Solicitors Regulation Authority, which brought the charges against Shiner, Andrew Tabachnik of 39 Essex Chambers said: ‘What this amounts to is that Shiner thought the ends would justify the means of his actions’.
He said that in soliciting clients he showed ‘a clear disregard for the rules that solicitors abide by’.
Tabachnik also read a statement from Colonel James Coote, who as a major commanding British troops during the battle of Danny Boy.
Coote said that Shiner's allegations were some of the most serious brought against British troops since the second world war and that he and many of his men had lost faith in the legal profession.
Earlier today, Shiner failed to get the case adjourned on the grounds that he was too unwell to attend court and did not have the money to fight the case.
The hearing, which is expected to last three weeks, continues.
