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Solicitor claimed she worked 28 hours a day to earn £70k bonus


Samina Ahmed struck off by disciplinary tribunal for exaggerating her billable time

Samina Ahmed’s claimed hours were ‘an impossibility’, a tribunal said
Tim Sigsworth


A solicitor claimed to have worked 28 hours a day in an attempt to earn a £70,000 bonus.

Samina Ahmed, 46, was struck off after exaggerating her billable hours to qualify for her firm’s 400 per cent bonus scheme.


The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal also fined her £5,000 after ruling her claimed hours were “an impossibility” which showed “dishonesty and lack of integrity”.

Ms Ahmed worked as a legal aid solicitor at Tuckers Solicitors in Manchester between 2005 and 2022.

But she was dismissed in June 2022 after being found to have recorded an average 28 hours a day at work over the past 11 months.

‘No bonus was paid’
The tribunal heard the senior solicitor was “motivated by the firm’s bonus scheme” to alter her hours.

“Ms Ahmed aimed to reach the highest bonus tier (400 per cent of salary), potentially earning £69,300,” Frosoulla Kyriacou, chairman of the tribunal, said in the judgment.

“No bonus was paid, however, as the firm discovered the misconduct in time.”

The firm uncovered her erroneous hours in April 2022 and told her to stop overstating how much work she had done.

But she was dismissed on June 30 that year after she continued to exaggerate her hours.

She initially denied the allegations before admitting them.

‘Acted dishonestly’
“The tribunal found that Ms Ahmed acted dishonestly and without integrity in recording time against matters where she had not and could not have completed the work claimed,” Mr Kyriacou said in the judgment.

“In so doing she had failed to uphold public trust and confidence in the profession.

“The tribunal found that the seriousness of Ms Ahmed’s dishonest conduct was at the highest level and the resulting, foreseeable harm, both to others and to the reputation of the profession, was such that the sanction of striking off the roll was fair, reasonable and proportionate.”


The tribunal heard £98,093 of taxpayer cash had to be repaid by Tuckers Solicitors to the Legal Aid Agency, which had paid the firm the sum based on Ms Ahmed’s billed hours for work representing prisoners.

Ms Ahmed, who has since worked in retail and as an apprentice for Wigan council, was ordered to pay £5,000 in costs.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority had argued she should pay costs of £49,600.

“The tribunal did not consider that Ms Ahmed was entirely unable to meet a costs order in a reasonable period; however, it considered it appropriate to reduce the total amount of costs to reflect a fair contribution, taking into account Ms Ahmed’s limited means,” Mr Kyriacou said.

malali:
If you have worked abroad before.....you will know its possible to work 28hours a day as an immigrant..

YoungLionken:
Fake imagery is very common online than anywhere else, with the most claiming what they're not. Bring back the old days when there was no social media of any sort, where everything ranging from family, friendship, love, etc was genuine...

malali:
If you have worked abroad before.....you will know its possible to work 28hours a day as an immigrant..

malali:
If you have worked abroad before.....you will know its possible to work 28hours a day as an immigrant..

Gbadugbakun:
When will Nigeria companies start paying their workers by the hour.

post=137991840:
Fraud destroys your future and bring shame to your family.

Honestly and Integrity pays.

We Rise ✔️

malali:
If you have worked abroad before.....you will know its possible to work 28hours a day as an immigrant..

dapsoneh:
How many hours are in a day madam

FreeStuffsNG:
Ms Ahmed, who has since worked in retail and as an apprentice for Wigan council, was ordered to pay £5,000 in costs.

Her dishonesty got her demoted in life. This is the story of many people who obtained wealth by crooked means and what awaits those currently getting wealth by crooked means.

DISGRACE and DEMOTION!