An events manager who had not practised as a solicitor for six years has been fined £10,000 for being caught driving with traces of drugs in her system.
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal heard that Rachel Pickles, who stopped practising in 2015/16 but remained on the roll, had been driving home from London the morning after a work event and was involved in a four-car collision. She was taken to hospital and traces of MDMA and cocaine were found in her system.
She was also found to be in possession of small amounts of both drugs as well as cannabis resin and 19 tablets of Diazepam.
Pickles pleaded guilty to six offences before Truro Magistrates Court in April 2019 and was fined £458 and banned from driving for 16 months. She reported the matter to the SRA in 2021, having mistakenly previously believed she had not needed to report it due to the non-renewal of her PC.
Pickles, who was admitted as a solicitor in 2014, explained that she had foolishly accepted a tablet at a work event following reassurances there was ‘nothing illegal in it’. The following morning she felt fine and deferred driving until 11am to ensure she was safe to drive. She had only passed her test a few months earlier.
She agreed with the SRA to be fined £10,000 but said in mitigation that she was a person of ‘impeccable, exemplary and unblemished character’ who had expressed genuine remorse, regret and insight for her errors of judgment and the harm caused. She added that qualifying as a solicitor was a matter of ‘immense pride’ and fulfilled a long-held ambition.
The tribunal said the driving offences were aggravated by Pickles’ possession of cannabis, cocaine and MDMA, all of which were illegal substances.
The level of the admitted misconduct was deemed ‘more serious’ such that a fine was required to uphold proper standards within the profession and maintain public confidence in the regulatory system. She must also pay £2,500 costs.
