A paralegal has been barred from the legal profession after attempting to cover up a mistake by fabricating an email, which led to a client’s case being struck out. Chaida Aboobakar, a personal injury paralegal at New Law Solicitors in Cardiff, mistakenly included the wrong case number on a payment request. This error resulted in the case being struck out due to non-payment of the required fee.
In an effort to conceal her mistake, Aboobakar created a fake email displaying the correct case number, as reported by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). However, this email did not align with the original one held by the court. When seeking relief against sanction, she submitted a witness statement blaming the unpaid fee on the court’s error and even instructed counsel on the matter.
The case dragged on for approximately four months, with Aboobakar maintaining that the court was at fault and making similar claims to opposing solicitors. The 2025 Legal Cheek Firms Most List highlights concerns raised by the judge, prompting an internal investigation by NewLaw. The firm discovered that the only email sent to the court contained the incorrect case number, confirming Aboobakar’s fabrication of the follow-up email to cover her tracks.
The SRA found Aboobakar to have “deliberately tried to mislead the court, counsel, and solicitors for the counter-party and had fabricated documentation placed before the court. In doing so, she acted dishonestly and without integrity”. As a result, she was disqualified from holding any role at a law firm and was also ordered to pay costs of £600.
