Fear of adverse publicity has prompted a law firm to stop taking on cases against individuals for alleged copyright infringement through illegal downloading of material.

Regional firm Tilly Bailey Irvine is one of three firms that have been subject to complaints by members of the public and consumer group Which? over the manner in which they have pursued cases of alleged illegal file-sharing on behalf of their clients. The firm, along with London firms Davenport Lyons and ACS: Law, is currently under investigation by the SRA following complaints about alleged misconduct. All three firms deny any impropriety.

TBI managing partner John Hall said: ‘We have been surprised and disappointed at the amount of adverse publicity that our firm has attracted in relation to this work, and the extra time and resources that have been required to deal solely with this issue.

‘We are concerned that the adverse publicity could affect other areas of our practice and therefore, following discussions with our clients, we have reluctantly agreed that we will cease sending out further letters of claim.’

He added: ‘We should stress that this decision is based on purely commercial reasons and does not alter our view that our conduct has always complied with the Solicitors Code of ­Conduct.’