Abusive Corrupt Keystone Law Legal Strategy Destroys Client's Lives AND Trust in Legal Institutions

Mark Sullivan - 
represents high-net-worth
individuals 

In a court case that was under the direction of Law Firm of the Year 2020 - Keystone Law, a NHS psychologist was falsely accused of trying to blackmail someone using their HIV status - which makes a complete mockery of his professional confidentiality obligations as both a health and psychology professional. 

It is an insult to all NHS health professionals who worked the pandemic and recklessly endangers patients with the grubby insinuation that NHS heroes do not take the safety and confidentiality of their patients (clients) seriously. This man and 'Lawyer of the Year 2020' Keystone law are a stain on the entire legal profession.

(Read about the High Court car crash at this link) 

This allegation was made in a Defence and Counterclaim prepared by Keystone solicitor Mark Sullivan whose client Mark Harrison said in High Court UNDER OATH he was advised to lie by his legal representative who at the time was Mark Sullivan at Keystone Law. Mr. Sullivan is no longer working at Keystone Law. 

This defence was never intended to go to court but was part of a deliberate sleazy smear campaign intended to waste court time, increase costs and line the pockets of unscrupulous law firm Keystone Law. It is an insult to all NHS staff as well as the victims of sexual abuse and violence.

These dirty legal 'tactics' can only be described as myopic, idiotic, clumsy and reckless. The complete lack of strategic thinking has caused irreparable damage for Keystone Law and their client's professional and personal reputations because of the undeniable post-trial fallout caused by their short-term avaricious legal thuggery. 

These tactics were called 'disingenuous' by legal professionals and that they were. Crooked and blatantly corrupt. Their actions bring the entire legal profession into disrepute and blatantly contradict the standards we all have the right to expect in the SRA Code of Conduct. The scapegoating of Mark Sullivan by Keystone Law, who won The Lawyer of the year in 2020 is nothing short of cowardly, contemptible and scandalous - which shockingly no one in the legal profession will condemn. We are outraged.

Lawyers have a responsibility to tell the truth. This heinous lie was dropped as the first order of court business because it had no merit. Used to increase costs and bully an innocent man as he cared for his dying mum and worked the pandemic the damage to his reputation could have been catastrophic. But it was the damage this legal advice caused to their own clients that should have every legal professional condemning the actions of Keystone Law.

WE DEMAND THEY ARE STRIPPED OF THEIR 2020 LAWYER OF THE YEAR AWARD AND WE ASK COMIC DARA O'BRIAIN TO WITHDRAW FROM HOSTING THE LAWYER AWARDS 2023

When there were no more lies to tell Keystone advised settling but their clients went to court anyway (Read about the High Court car crash at this link) with a raft of completely untrue allegations. The result can only be described as a car crash as these lies were called out and the truth lost Keystone's client Newfound Global 40% of their business including the BBC as a client and his daughter her dream Prada modelling contract according to Mark Harrison Mr Gillingwater's brother-in-law. Peter Gillingwater is also no longer a member of Kea New Zealand where he served for many years before lying in the UK’s highest legal chamber about child sexual abuse. 

Mr Gillingwater has also now been removed as a business mentor for London and Partners after our complaint that he is unfit to represent London given his court room attack on an NHS hero who was working at the height of the pandemic where his psychology team were making final calls between Covid patients and their families. 

The blame should be laid directly at Mark Sullivan's and Keystone Law's door for deliberate strategy of deceit and denial they employed to lengthen the court process and line their own pockets to the tune of £80,000 at the expense of their clients. 

While Mr. Mark Sullivan has paid with his job (eventually) Keystone Law have still made a healthy profit from this legal thuggery carried out under their company name. A formal complaint has been made to them by Mr. Kleinhentz about the abusive treatment he received from Keystone Law during this court case at a very difficult time from him both personally and professionally.

In their reply William Robbins ‘Complaints Director’ asked Mr Kleinhentz to provide evidence and only then would they investigate. Of course all of the evidence is with them already.

This outrageous lie was just one example of tactics of deceit, dishonesty and denial that was employed throughout the court proceedings which also saw the same NHS hero being falsely accused of saying Peter Gillingwater CEO of Newfound Global raped his own children. Hiding behind child rape victims is deplorable, and accusing someone of saying this who helps the victims of sexual abuse and violence every day is nothing short of toxic. These vicious, malicious and completely untrue attacks could have ended his career and were being submitted to the High Court as he worked in the Health Service throughout the Covid pandemic and while he was also caring for his terminally ill mother. 

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is the regulatory body charged with upholding standards for solicitors. Their code of conduct espouses integrity and honesty as their highest values. The conduct in this case does not breach this code according to their investigator Richard Everett. He said that Mark Sullivan was just submitting a range of legal defences, but a lie can never be a defence in a court of law, which is why it was dropped as the first order of business.

The UK legal system is broken. The failure of the SRA and the judge in this case to adequately deal with this dishonest, disreputable and bullying behaviour, which I believe is endemic within the legal profession, not only damages the people involved in such cases, but brings the whole legal profession into disrepute. We are appalled that this behaviour by lawyers not only goes unpunished but earns the company a gong for lawyer of the year.

Lives have been irreparably damaged because of this case and the way it was allowed to proceed. If this case resonates with you as a member of the public and you have a similar story please get in touch. If the legal profession will not hold itself to the standards that they profess to uphold then we must. Email your story to wigsandwaffle@gmail.com 

Disingenuous: deceitful, dishonest, false, unfair, crooked, duplicitous,
insidious, mendacious, sly, shifty, two-faced, underhand.

The 10 Principles of the SRA Code of Conduct

The Code is part of the solicitors’ regulator’s Handbook which sets out 10 mandatory Principles which pervade the entirety of the Code. These 10 Principles are that solicitors must:

1. Uphold the rule of law and the proper administration of justice
2. Act with integrity
3. Not allow their independence to be compromised
4. Act in the best interests of each client
5. Provide a proper standard of service to clients
6. Behave in a way that maintains the trust the public places in them and in the provision of legal services
7. Comply with their legal and regulatory obligations and deal with the regulators and ombudsmen in an open, timely and co-operative manner
8. Run their business or carry out their role in the business effectively, in accordance with proper governance and sound financial and risk management principles
9. Run their business or carry out their role in the business in a way that encourages equality of opportunity and respect for diversity, and
10. Protect client money and assets

Please email is at wigsandwaffle@gmail.com