Shamed former lawyer Philip Shiner pleaded guilty to fraud yesterday after orchestrating a 3million legal aid scam relating to claims against Iraq War veterans.
The 67-year-old, who was struck off for pursuing false torture and murder allegations against British soldiers, now faces a potential jail sentence after admitting three counts of fraud on the eve of his trial.
The criminal conviction cements the astonishing downfall of a lawyer who was once voted human rights lawyer of the year and feted as a champion of Iraqi victims of alleged brutality by the UK military.
Shiner, who founded and ran the now-defunct law firm Public Interest Lawyers, brought thousands of criminal complaints to the Iraq Historic Investigations Team – a body set up by the Ministry of Defence to investigate soldiers. Not a single one was ever charged.
The National Crime Agency then launched a five-year investigation into Shiner’s practices which revealed he had gained legal aid work worth 3million by dishonest practices, including cold-calling to drum up clients.
This emerged in the wake of the Al Sweady inquiry which was set up by the Government in 2009 to examine claims that British troops had massacred Iraqi civilians in southern Iraq in May 2004.
Philip Shiner, who was struck off for pursuing false torture and murder allegations against British soldiers, now faces a potential jail sentence after admitting three counts of fraud on the eve of his trial
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