Claimant law firm Public Interest Lawyers ceases trading

Public Interest Lawyers, the claimant law firm that brought legal proceedings against a number of councils in the past - most notably in relation to changes to library services, ceased trading at the end of last month.

A statement on the firm’s website said it would no longer be trading from 31 August. “This means that PIL will no longer be offering legal services and/or advice.”

PIL’s closure came just weeks after the Legal Aid Agency terminated its contract with the practice, claiming that contractual requirements had been breached.

The agency said it had taken this action “after a thorough review of information provided by PIL, following an investigation by the Solicitors Regulation Authority into the firm”.

The SRA has asked the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal to consider allegations against the firm. PIL issued a statement in July saying that all allegations were unproven, and would be denied and robustly defended.