A Cumbrian law firm has closed suddenly with just a note on the door.
Butterworths Solicitors, owned by the PM Group, has branches in Cockermouth, Carlisle, Penrith, Kendal and Hensingham.
A poster was put up on the door of its Carlisle branch on Lowther Street, which said: “Due to regulatory matters, the PM Group businesses carried out in within this building can no longer trade.”
It is not clear what the situation is with the firm’s other offices in Cumbria, but there is no response from them on the phone.
And Google has the Sheffield-based PM Group as temporarily closed.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority monitors law firms to make sure they are complying with the rules.
An SRA spokesman said: “When law firms close, they must do so in accordance with our rules to make sure that client interests are protected.
“This includes advising those with live matters about seeking new representation, returning archived files to past clients and the redistribution of any monies held.
“We have had a number of calls today that suggest Butterworths have not closed in the manner we’d expect.
“We will be contacting the partners of Butterworths to find out what’s going on and to remind them of their professional obligations.
“If they are closing, we would expect those affected should be contacted soon.”
The association added that clients and former clients should wait for contact from Butterworths.
If they do not feel they have been contacted in good time, they can contact the authority via https://www.sra.org.uk/home/contact-us/
