30/03/2025
To:
The Legal Ombudsman
Paul McFadden Chief Ombudsman
Steve Pearson Deputy Chief Ombudsman
The Solicitors Regulation Authority
Paul Philip CEO
The Office of Public Guardian
The Court of Protection
Bcc all Gmail addresses.
Posted to Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090988440691
For the last three years I have been at the mercy of the most incompetent and deceitful probate solicitor. Namely, Mannie Islam, supervisor at the law firm Mullis & Peake, Romford, Essex. Quite frankly, a disgrace to your legal profession.
Mannie’s unscrupulous practices have caused unnecessary delays, emotional distress and financial hardship at a time when I have been dealing with the loss of my mother and the dishonest behaviour of my brother. By way of covering up his incompetence, Mannie has told harmful lies on a regular basis.
While responding to my complaints to both The Legal Ombudsman and The Solicitors Regulation Authority, Mullis & Peake’s disputes solicitor, Esther Marshal, has regularly been given misleading information by Mannie.
As all official complaint processes have been repeatedly thwarted by Mannie’s dishonesty, I am circulating the following review as a warning to potential beneficiaries who are also suffering the loss of a loved one, or embroiled in a familial dispute over inheritance:
Beware this incompetent, lying probate solicitor!
After Mullis & Peake probate solicitor, Mannie Islam took nearly a year to submit an application for grant of probate, I filed an official complaint with the Chairman of Mullis & Peake, Martyn Trenerry. I drew particular attention to the fact Mannie’s only communication during a critical period was one vague email and NO phone calls. The following written response serves as a perfect example of Mannie’s many convoluted lies:
‘Other than a brief period before Christmas (when I was on holiday in Australia) and early in the New Year (when I was unwell), we have always been in regular dialogue by email and telephone (mainly telephone)’
Because solicitors keep detailed records of all communications for billing purposes, these particular lies are easy to disprove. Accordingly, in the following response to the Solicitors Regulation Authority, Esther Marshal had no alternative but to admit Mannie was lying:
‘The firm have acknowledged that you only received one communication in the eight-month period outlined’
Despite the fact that I sent NO emails during that same time period, and have well documented proof that Mannie had earlier invited me to Mullis & Peake’s Romford office, without informing my fellow beneficiary until after our meeting, Mannie instructed Esther to submit the following lie to The Legal Ombudsman:
‘The firm have explained that they had an obligation to maintain open communications with both beneficiaries, and as a result of this, did not respond to some of Mr Rumney’s emails, so as to not prefer one beneficiary over the other.’
Instead of speeding things up, my complaint caused Mannie to deliberately slow the application for grant of probate down. By refusing my written request for help, Mullis & Peake's extremely sweet yet completely ineffectual Chairman, Martyn Trenerry allowed Mannie to drag the application out for a further two years.
When Mannie realized he had forgotten to make me sign a letter of engagement he went so far as to deny I had ever been his client. Despite written evidence to the contrary, he instructed Esther to repeat this lie to The Solicitors Regulation Authority and The Legal Ombudsman.
All-up, it took Mannie three years to have not one, but two, incorrect forms rejected by The Probate Registry. Despite the fact I have no knowledge of probate law, Mannie instructed Esther to lie to The Legal Ombudsman, claiming that I specifically instructed him to submit the wrong form.
Mannie threatened to charge me extra to submit the correct forms if I pursued the matter, had one of the replacement forms rejected by misspelling my mother's name, lost the original will in the post, instructed Esther to lie to the Solicitors Regulation Authority and The Legal Ombudsman about the date he filed an IHT400 tax return then refused multiple requests to provide a dated copy. Mannie then falsely blamed HMRC for losing the return he hadn’t submitted.
By falsely promising to recover money stolen by my brother, Mannie lied his way into the position of substitute executor. This meant I simply could not rid myself of him or his exorbitant fees. In order to settle this cashed up estate with a comprehensive will, I had no choice but to retain another solicitor to bring Mannie and Mullis & Peake under control. The Legal Ombudsman eventually fined Mannie, but he laughed that off as a complete waste of everybody's time.
The moral of this story is, do a little research. Don’t run the gauntlet like I did. It’s really not that hard. There are only four forms to choose from and the Probate Registry does all the work. In my case it was about as tricky as renewing a passport. Unlike me, you can learn how long each step of the three month process should take. Keep control of the probate solicitor you are paying while suffering through the loss of a loved one, and never let them talk you into relinquishing control!
Always read the firm's real reviews, and get everything in writing. Oh, and if you’re worried that someone with knowledge of the law will sue me for libel, don’t be. I have it on very good authority the truth can never be libelous. When these extremely serious accusations, for Mannie, his colleagues, and his firm, force Mullis & Peake to take action against me I will finally be able to obtain written proof of the many other lies Mannie caused Esther Marshal to tell The Legal Ombudsman and Solicitors Regulation Authority during their respective investigations.
Of course, if Mannie fails to take any action after this scathing, yet entirely factual, review, you will be able to draw your own conclusions. For those who wish to read more about this debacle, my book ‘killing time for Mannie the liar’ is now available on Amazon. The story of incompetence and deceit reads like fiction because it's almost impossible to believe it's based on real events. Of course, names have been changed to protect the ‘idiots’.
Kindle:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0F2WMJ536?ref_=ast_author_mpb.
Paperback: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0F31CF3XD?ref_=ast_author_dp&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ld_MMzoPqQJWOFcslId_B6CPU0LOhpUhbcxaZlhRIU1BC4OW5E4LYvACH7L0t8LWsfcmsZFl1T4VsNX-VU4UQv2K1R3HFODRcjtA8XEOt-X-oxXYPTa3rtb7QUvJuE1C.73v-IjDsP5SXY6p_cq5gSiFFK0s1OVXceyYlPMumsrE&dib_tag=AUTHOR
