The spiralling contoversy around the integrity department at the British Horseracing Authority has come to the attention of the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The actions of the lawyer Matthew Lohn are being considered by the SRA in response to a slew of news stories provoked by the revelation that he was being paid to offer private advice to the BHA while also serving as the chairman of its independent disciplinary panel.
Lohn sat on disciplinary panels for the BHA for 11 years while remaining largely unknown within racing but was catapulted into the public eye in April when the trainer Jim Best began an appeal against a four-year ban imposed by a panel chaired by Lohn. It was at that point that the news broke that Lohn had also been offering the BHA private advice on matters unrelated to the disciplinary hearings, raising an appearance of bias.
The verdict against Best has since been quashed, along with another verdict delivered by a Lohn-chaired panel, a six-month ban against the Irish-based trainer Paul Gilligan. People found in breach of racing’s rules in seven other cases have been sent letters by the BHA recently, advising that they may now have a right of action against those verdicts because of Lohn’s involvement in the panels that ruled on their cases.
An SRA spokesperson said: “We are aware of the issue and will look at all available information before deciding on appropriate action”. The SRA could decide to open a formal investigation if such a course of action was deemed appropriate. It is not believed that the SRA has taken any interest in the solicitors on the BHA’s staff, which include its integrity director, Adam Brickell.
The BHA declined to comment. A spokesman for Fieldfisher, the firm at which Lohn is senior partner, did not respond to requests for comment. Lohn has maintained his silence on the subject throughout.
