A high-profile solicitor who appeared on a television programme containing antisemitic content has been fined £6,500.
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal heard that Mohammed Tasnime Akunjee was a guest on a broadcast in 2022 called Palestine Declassified, shown on Iranian state-owned network Press TV.
He had understood the programme was going to discuss the issue of how lawsuits were being used to suppress Palestinian voices, but when he arrived he became aware that the episode was entitled ‘Mishcon de Reya – Zionist Law Firm’.
Akunjee did not himself express any antisemitic sentiments but continued to participate in the broadcast and made statements during the recording about Mishcon that were false and inaccurate.
Despite ‘feeling uneasy’ about his participation after the broadcast had been completed, the SRA alleged that he failed to take steps in a timely way to raise concerns about the content, only requesting that it be taken down when the regulator started investigating.
Akunjee, admitted to the roll in 2010, has more than 34,000 followers on Twitter and is a prominent commentator on legal matters. He has represented clients in a number of high-profile cases, including the legal action to restore the British citizenship of Shamima Begum, who was a teenager when she left London to join the Islamic State in Syria. He is currently working as a consultant criminal defence solicitor at Waterfords Group.
His appearance on Palestine Declassified was subject to a complaint from James Libson, the managing partner of Mishcon de Reya. The programme had been hosted by Chris Williamson, a former MP suspended from the Labour party, with Akunjee introduced as an expert on the issues being covered and repeatedly referred to as a solicitor.
The programme was a wide-ranging criticism of Mishcon de Reya and individuals working for it, focussing on the team dealing with ‘Israel-related activities’ and on Jewish employees. The SRA said the content and tone of the programme was antisemitic, although there was no suggestion that Akunjee said anything which was antisemitic.
The solicitor did refer to Mishcon as having been fined for money laundering and later suggested the firm had previously represented former Chilean dictator General Pinochet. In fact, the firm had not faced any criminal investigation for money laundering but had been fined by the SRA for breaches of anti-money laundering regulations. The firm had never represented Pinochet.
Akunjee accepted he had been mistaken and told Libson his ‘blunder’ had caused him ‘deep embarrassment’. He had written to Palestine Declassified and requested that it withdraw the programme or edit him out, and has published an apology on his Twitter profile, as well as invited Libson to liaise with him so he could make a written apology.
The tribunal found that Akunjee’s misconduct was ‘unplanned and spontaneous’ and that his culpability was low. He had not known when he arrived at the studio or when he left how it would be edited and had made a mistake under pressure when talking about the history of Mishcon. He was cleared of acting without integrity and of acting recklessly.
The tribunal’s ruling added: ‘The tribunal observed that the respondent had not concealed any wrongdoing. He had in fact been very open about it. However, given that he was unprepared on the topic, he ought to have known that if he made an error in circumstances where he had not qualified his answers, that error could have the effect of undermining confidence in the legal profession.’
Akunjee was fined £6,500 and ordered to pay £30,000 costs.
