Law Society president quits amid dishonesty accusations
President of the Law Society David Greene will step down from his role after being accused of dishonesty in a long-running dispute with a former client.
Greene announced he planned to “step aside” less than halfway through his one-year term as president, after a case against him was again referred to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT).
In the past decade, Greene has been embroiled in a dispute with former client David Davies, the director and owner of EcoPower, over fees Greene’s firm said the businessman failed to pay. Davies has accused Greene of misleading the court during the dispute.
According to Davies, Greene “deliberately and dishonestly lied” about the disputed £7,000 legal bill. Greene denies the allegation and any wrongdoing.
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) initially rejected Davies’ claim that Greene had breached professional rules, but the High Court ruled in January that the tribunal was wrong to have dismissed the claim without a full hearing, and ordered it to be return to the disciplinary panel.
In a statement, Greene, who is also owner of law firm Edwin Coe, said the fact the matter had been referred back to the SDT during his presidency could become a “distraction” from his representative role.
“The fact that this dispute has been referred back to the SDT during my presidential year will, I fear, become a distraction from my role representing the solicitor profession – at a time when it is facing a period of unprecedented challenge,” said Greene.
“So, it is with profound regret that I have decided to step aside from my role as president of the Law Society of England and Wales during the currency of proceedings, with effect from 19 March instead of at the end of my term this October.”
Greene will be replaced by Stephanie Boyce, the current vice president of the society, from 19 March.
Boyce has been vice president at The Law Society since October 2020, and is also director at Stephanie Boyce Consulting.