Lawyer jailed for luxury 'piggy bank'

Solicitor Michael Greet was jailed at Bristol Crown Court

A Bristol solicitor who stole almost £500,000 from clients has been jailed for six years.

Bristol Crown Court heard how 53-year-old Michael Greet used his client account as a "piggy bank" to fund an extravagant lifestyle for almost three years.

Greet, of Chantry Road, Clifton, was convicted last month of stealing £487,000, after a seven-week trial.

Victims have begun suing him in the civil courts and moves are underway to confiscate his family's home.

The court had heard how he began transferring funds as his firm, M H Greet and Co, headed towards bankruptcy.

You should have considered your family when you chose to embark on the scheme to steal

Judge David Ticehurst

A jury was told how Greet, as the sole principal, switched money from client accounts to his office coffers and used it to pay off credit cards, his mortgage and luxury items.

Stuart Lawson-Rogers QC, representing Greet, said the solicitor was now bankrupt - a "ruined man" who had "lost his good character".

He would find it difficult to find work when eventually freed from prison, he said.

Blamed others

He added that a "series of civil actions" had been brought against Greet and said his young family would suffer if he was sent to jail for an extended period.

Sentencing him on Friday, Judge David Ticehurst said: "Michael Greet, you are a disgrace to your profession.

"The reputation of decent, hard-working and honest solicitors has been adversely affected by dishonest persons like yourself."

He said Greet had tried to blame others, including his "loyal" book-keeper, and never accepted criminal responsibility.

Struck off

"You should have considered your family's situation when you chose to embark on the scheme to steal to fund the lifestyle you wanted," said the judge.

Greet was sentenced to six years for theft, three years for making a false trust deed for a property in Clifton, and 18 months for the charge of failing to keep proper accounts.

The sentences were to run concurrently.

Judge Ticehurst said Greet could expect to serve at least two-thirds of his sentence.

He was struck off by the Law Society in 1998.