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Paul Philip, chief executive of the Solicitors Regulation Authority, has hit back after the SRA’s latest indemnity insurance plans were fiercely criticised by the Law Society. He said the regulator had made “absolutely no new recommendations”.

The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal has taken the highly unusual step of striking out for abuse of process the prosecution of five solicitors, after finding that the actions of the Solicitors Regulation Authority had made it impossible for them to have a fair trial.

A former president of Bolton Law Society, described by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal as a “fundamentally decent man”, made 61 improper transfers from client account and used a personal credit card to keep his firm afloat. He is now working as a paralegal for the deputy vice-president of the national Law Society.

The vast majority of solicitors who responded to a Law Society survey on the practising certificate fee said they thought it did not represent value for money. Many said the Law Society should get a bigger share and the Solicitors Regulation Authority a smaller one.

A solicitor who withdrew money more than 150 times from client accounts so as to keep his firm afloat has been struck off for his “disgraceful” behaviour. In mitigation, the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal was told that the solicitor had “treated his practice as his family”.