The sentencing of a former solicitor struck off for failing to transfer her client’s £132,000 divorce settlement was adjourned today for more information on the chronology of the fraud.
Analiza Kjaer, 50, appeared in the Central Criminal Court where she spoke only to confirm her name and that she had been previously convicted at Croydon Magistrates Court of a single charge of fraud by abuse of position.
The court heard today that Kjaer, admitted in April 2005 and struck off in 2022, was instructed to act in divorce proceedings in 2020. A £132,000 settlement was paid into the firm’s account in three equal instalments. However Kjaer failed to transfer the money to the client, who reported her to the police, Action Fraud and the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
Kjaer used a proportion of money for personal and business expenses including making withdrawals, paying a loan debt and a self-assessment tax bill to HMRC. The court heard £64,000 was left in the client account.
The SRA intervened into Kjaer’s practice and Able Law in June 2021. The client received £132,000 from the Compensation Fund plus interest to cover her loss.
A victim impact statement from the client was today read out in court by Dennis Barry, prosecuting. He said: ‘In one day she lost everything, her house, her money and had no place to live, her life fell apart at that time.
‘She explains as a result of what happened she lost weight and stopped sleeping, she could not sleep at all and is still experiencing problems sleeping at times. She did not know how she was going to live if she did not get the money.
‘Because market conditions were different, had she been able to purchase the home she planned in 2021, she would have been able to afford much more than she was she was able to afford in 2022. She finds it difficult to trust professionals since this occurred.’
Her Honour Judge Trowler KC adjourned the sentencing until the spring in order for a chronology to be produced and more details provided in relation to Kjaer’s mitigation
