“Having had to instruct Jonathan for a second time I have found him to be compassionate, forthright and effective. His advice is clear and precise even when the matter seems illogical and his effective drafting has meant the matter has been dealt with, with minimum fuss and achieving the desired outcome efficiently and at the first time of asking. I would have no hesitation in recommending Jonathan, a definite Ace to have up your sleeve!”
Legal Executive.
“Jonathan is a very experienced solicitor with a vast knowledge of procedural law in terms of handling complaints. I contacted Jonathan when a complaint was made against me by a former client who was unhappy that I would not perform certain ‘reserved activities’ which I was not legally qualified nor equipped to do. Due to this being my first complaint, and having severe anxiety over the thought of losing my credibility with the organisations I belonged too, I contacted Jonathan who prepared a reply which found me fully exonerated from the false allegations posed against me. Jonathan’s pricing is very reasonable and he was very understanding always at the other end of the phone or email.
Although this complaint was not the biggest, Jonathan handled it professionally and executed a reply in a very timely manner. If another complaint was ever to arise I would instruct Jonathan straight away!”
Paralegal
“I have received the decision that confirms the exceptional result you have achieved for me.
I write to you to express my gratitude for such a high quality of your professional involvement, for your outstanding devotion to me, your client, the speed with which you intervened and obtained results and for the incomparable and unforeseen outcome.
Being a lawyer myself, I perfectly understand that in your person I had chosen the best of the best!”
Registered Foreign Lawyer.
“Instructing Jon was one of the best investments I have ever made. After seeing Jon in action in the SDT, particularly his cross examination of the witnesses, I stand by that comment.
In terms of his Advocacy and Cross examination, we have all see Courtroom dramas on television where an advocate cross examines a witness where the effect is theatrical and explosive. Jon’s cross examination during my case can only be described in the same way. During cross examination Jon remained calm, he was measured yet at the same time his cross examination of the witnesses for the SRA had the same theatrical and explosive effect that Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson’s performance had in the famous movie A few Good Men.
The witnesses were not credible. Jon’s cross examination was well planned, well prepared and his approach had the effect of eliciting information and admissions from the witness. He had the ability to not only obtain the truth from them but also have them make admissions that they were untruthful. I have been doing court work for nearly 15 years; I have never seen an advocate with cross examination skills akin to Jon’s. I have never seen a trial in person which could have been part of a Hollywood movie. The result was that after Cross examination of the witnesses and obtaining admissions from them, Jon was able to make an application of No Case to Answer and the Tribunal dismissed 11 allegations of misconduct with 5 allegations of dishonesty. I am so pleased as the allegations could have ended my career. Fortunately I can now look to the future having had my name cleared and been vindicated of the allegations which were false and untrue. I doubt a lesser experienced advocate than Jon could have obtained the same result. I know I could not have and I consider myself to be reasonably skilled.
Solicitors wanting to advance their careers can literally spend hundreds and thousands on attending Advocacy Courses. After seeing Jon in action, my advice, save your money on training courses, find out when Jon is going to be in Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal, go along to sit in public gallery and watch him in action, you will learn a lot and save a fortune. I may have been defending my name and my career, and I am hopeful I can get back to court work soon, I have been making notes based on Jon’s performance for next time I represent a client in court and next time I have an opportunity to cross examine, although it will take years to get to the level of Jon’s advocacy skills.”
Solicitor.
“Having had the threat of an SRA investigation hanging over my head for 2 years I must reflect that the calm professionalism and knowledge of Jon has given me comfort and reassurance in a very testing period of my life. Despite being a solicitor of over twenty years I must reflect that I could not have written such well drafted and detailed letters as Jon did. Whilst I hope never to require Jon’s expertise again, I would not hesitate to recommend his services to anyone and everyone. I massive sincere appreciation to you for the well-reasoned method of dealing with such wide reaching investigations and achieving an excellent outcome of no further action”.
Solicitor
“I would just like to reiterate my sincere gratitude for all the strategic guidance, reassurances, plain talking and speed of response that you afforded me.
The past few weeks have been an incredibly worrying time for me both professionally and personally and I am delighted with the outcome of your discussions with RICS, which I could not have achieved without you or your knowledge of relevant caselaw, rules and regulations. Because of your involvement, I can now move on with my life and career!
I genuinely would not hesitate to recommend you to any other chartered surveyor that might be facing disciplinary action by the RICS.
Many thanks and all the very best to you.”
Surveyor
“If you are faced with regulatory action by the SRA, then Jonathan Goodwin is the right person to approach. He has extensive knowledge of the rules and regulations and his support and guidance was invaluable during a stressful ordeal. He is extremely efficient and meticulous in his work and capable of producing excellent results which is evident from the outcome reached in the Adjudicator deciding not to impose any conditions on my practicing certificate. I would highly recommend Jonathan to anybody who is facing regulatory action.”
Solicitor.
“Receiving papers from the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal is a distressing time for any solicitor; however, Jon’s calm manner in dealing with their application against me by preparing the necessary paperwork in response and liaising with the SRA’s solicitors on my behalf gave me the reassurance I needed in order to deal with the resulting pressures. Jon is a specialist in his field and I am extremely grateful to him for his advice and support throughout.”
Solicitor
“I have to start by saying that Jon Goodwin as a person and as a professional is simply the very best you will ever have the pleasure of encountering. As a professional he is absolutely incredible: proficient to the core, exceptionally talented, astute beyond belief and so detailed, you will believe that he has lived your case with you. I have never seen such careful consideration of the facts, such attention to detail and such in-depth knowledge of the law that applies to a case, nor have I ever had the pleasure of experiencing someone with such breadth and depth in knowledge and understanding of their speciality. Jon was always on point: there was nothing he missed and he knew every fact and every rule that applied to it. Jon’s written and oral advocacy on my behalf were breathtaking and so powerful that I can only describe him as nothing short of a miracle and worth his weight in gold. At the time I met Jon, I was facing a crippling dishonesty allegation that had come out of the blue after being under investigation already for over 2 years by the SRA and facing a potential strike off. I was terrified, anxiety filled constantly and unable to think or focus on anything. Jon literally saved my life. He managed with his unparalleled experience and knowledge to properly evidence that the dishonesty allegation was unsubstantiated and had it dropped. He then managed to have my case settled by way of an Agreed Outcome which he tirelessly negotiated on my behalf to get the best outcome possible, even when I thought it would be impossible to do so. Jon was not only exceptional as an advocate and solicitor but he was kind, caring and understanding. He actually treated me like a human being and I never felt like he marginalised any of my concerns. He was always available, always happy to explain things thoroughly and always there to ease the burden. I would recommend to anyone facing a regulatory issue to go straight to Jon and don’t bother looking anywhere else: there is no one better, stronger or smarter to succeed on your behalf than him. Thank you Jon – I will forever be grateful for your amazing hand in giving me back my life.”
Solicitor
“I was recommended to Jonathan by a former SRA forensic investigator who had worked with him in dealing with investigations and prosecutions on behalf of the SRA.
Jonathan now only acts for individuals and firms under investigation by the SRA.
When I spoke to Jonathan to outline the difficulty that we had, I was immediately impressed by his knowledge and background.
The SRA were seeking from as an explanation of conduct in a particular matter. We had prepared our own response to the points raised, but it was evident from Jonathan’s draft response once we had instructed him just how important it was to rely on his experience.
His intimate working knowledge of the SRA and it’s overarching principles and ethos meant he could quote case law and rules and regulations in a way that we had no experience of, and his vastly improved and extended response led to the SRA immediately confirming they would be taking no further action.
I would not hesitate to unreservedly recommend Jonathan to anyone having difficulties with the SRA.”
Solicitor.
“I never give reviews, but occasionally in life something or someone is so brilliant that a review is warranted and this is one such occasion.
Anyone reading this is no doubt facing a disciplinary action by the SRA or other professional body. I was facing a charge of dishonesty amongst other allegations and the stress over the two and a half years was immeasurable, it subsumed my life. Another solicitor recommended Jon and I engaged his services. It was the best thing I ever did. From the very first ‘phone call I knew that I had made the right decision. Jon was calm and measured. His knowledge of regulatory law is frankly outstanding. When dealing with my case I felt that I was his only client. He was honest, personable, down to earth and always on hand to guide me through the process, so I never felt alone.
My matter was referred to the SDT for a 3 day hearing and at that stage I just wanted to give up, but Jon’s wise counsel stopped me from doing so and I am so glad I followed his advice.
Jon’s advocacy is awesome. He completely demolished the SRA investigator under cross examination. I have honestly never seen anything like it. At that point I was so glad he was acting for me and not the SRA! The investigator even apologised to me twice during his evidence.
The SRA’s allegations were not proved and I walked away with my life back. I cannot recommend Jon highly enough. So if you are reading this and you are facing such actions then please do not hesitate and engage Jon, you will not regret it.”
Solicitor
“Dear Jon,
I would like to start by saying again how very grateful I am for you and your incredible work. Your diligence, depth of knowledge, exceptional expertise, years of experience and the quality of your drafting and negotiating skills are in my view (and my experience) nothing short of phenomenal.
Thank you so very much for being so dedicated, for taking so much time and attention to understand my position, the details of the case, what I want to achieve and for giving me so much time to explain things thoroughly. I truly say this: you are an absolute credit and role model for how solicitors should be with their clients and cases.
I can only say that I am absolutely overjoyed and will be forever grateful.”
Solicitor.
“Jon Goodwin recently represented me before the SDT when allegations against me were dismissed following his submission that there was no case to answer.He conducted himself with aplomb, is clear thinking, industrious and has a profound knowledge of the relevant law in which he practises.I would have no hesitation in recommending his services to any professional who has the misfortune to have to appear before a disciplinary tribunal”
Solicitor.
“It is very scary to receive a letter from the SRA, and it is hard to know where to turn. I made phone calls to a number of solicitors to represent me in this matter – some took several days to return my call, but Jon Goodwin called me back himself personally on the same day. His PA followed this up promptly and Jon gave me advice and reassurance very soon afterwards. This prompt service meant a lot to me at a very difficult time. I was delighted and extremely relieved that with Jon’s assistance the outcome was that the SRA decided to take no further action against me. I would certainly recommend Jon and his team to other solicitors facing SRA investigations.”
Solicitor.
“The first lawyer I spoke to, a specialist in SRA investigations, informed me that I was ‘almost certainly going to be struck off’. I had started to look for alternative careers. Fortunately, someone recommended me to Jon, and he demonstrated incredible know-how of the law and practice, but moreover was passionate and approachable. I was looking at a contested trial with all the associated costs and stress but Jon managed to clear my name via detailed written representations. I would not hesitate to recommend him.”
Solicitor.
“We have engaged Jonathan’s services on two occasions, the first in April 2018 when we were served notice of investigation by the SRA.
This had not been anticipated and after more than 30 years practice as a solicitor was somewhat of a shock to be the subject of an investigation.
We quickly realised that we would need expert legal advice and assistance and Jonathan was found upon recommendation. He gave very good early advice prior to my having to attend a meeting with two SRA investigators which was then followed by a file inspection.
There then following a period of constant pressure from the emailing of questions from the SRA which resulted in our having to devote a large amount of management time and caused great stress to the partners of the business. Jonathan was of great assistance in this time and prepared an extensive letter of response to the SRA which showed his experience and expertise in the area of SRA investigations and brought the investigation to an end.
After 9 months (!), we were then served with the investigation report and an Explanation of Conduct Letter in March 2019 and immediately engaged Jonathan’s services again. He prepared a great letter of response which was sent to SRA on 26th April and the following day(!), the SRA sent a letter confirming it was closing the file. This might very well be a record win!!
This was such a great result for Jonathan (and for this firm) and lifted the great pressure we were under of the SRA possibly taking the matter to Tribunal.
I cannot speak too highly for Jonathan’s ability and his empathy for the situation we encountered. He also has great insight into the SRA’s methods and thinking (having acted for them in an enforcement role for many years) which gives him an added “edge” over other Solicitor Advocates.”
Partner, Law Firm
“I can only say a thousand times thank you, thank you, thank you Jon. Jonathan Goodwin is nothing short of incredible and in my view a life saver. In a time of deep distress worry and anxiety, facing false allegations of dishonesty, Jon Goodwin was calm, measured and most importantly responsive. Nothing was too small and too trivial to talk through and explain which gave me great comfort.
Thanks to Jon Goodwin’s incredible work and his exceptional knowledge of the SRA, the rules and the law, I was informed they would not be proceeding with dishonesty allegations that were absolutely awful. Jon Goodwin’s response to the allegations and his knowledge was so amazing and so powerful that it literally stopped them from going further on that matter. I am so grateful to have found Jon and I would say to anyone who is worryingly dealing with the stress of an SRA investigation to go to Jon Goodwin; if you want the best fighting chance of success, Jon Goodwin is the person to have in your corner.”
Solicitor.
“If you are faced with an sra investigation as I was it is a harrowing experience and lengthy process. You certainly need an expert to navigate on your behalf and advise. I found Jon Goodwin extremely professional, available when needed and sound in his advice and would happily recommend him. I was more than happy with the sra decision.”
Solicitor.
“Thank you for your support and patience throughout this very trying time following the SRA’s investigation.Your experience of SRA investigations was invaluable in negotiating a Regulatory Settlement Agreement and it is a great relief to put the whole process behind me .”
Solicitor
“When I had my difficulty with the SRA, Jonathan was fantastic with his approach, and whilst it was a very stressful time, he did his best to put my mind at rest and approached the situation sensibly with a plan of action that ultimately worked really well. He managed to set out the facts in such a methodical manner and coupled with his references to various judgements and commentaries, he convinced the SRA to make a u turn on their proposed restrictions over my certificate. It is such a relief to now have my full (and clear) practicing certificate again!”
Solicitor.