In what has been described as a landmark ruling, former Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer partner Ryan Beckwith has prevailed in his appeal in the High Court against the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal’s findings against him in a high-profile sexual misconduct case.
The Queen’s Bench Division today (27 November) overturned the tribunal’s October 2019 findings that Beckwith’s behaviour with a junior lawyer was in breach of principles two and six of the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s code of conduct, requiring solicitors to ‘act with integrity’ and ‘behave in a way that maintains the trust the public places in you and in the provision of legal services’.