Alerts

Warning: Letter misusing the name of Cheshire Estate and Legal Limited (trading as CEL Solicitors)

14 February 2025

A letter has been sent claiming to be from ‘Peter De Buysscher’ of Cheshire Estate and Legal Limited (trading as CEL Solicitors)

What is the scam?

A letter has been sent from an individual claiming to 'Peter De Buysscher' misusing the name and address of a genuine firm of solicitors  (see below) alleging that cases from a third-party company have been assigned to the genuine firm from the European Financial and Economic Crime Centre at Europol.

The SRA understands the letter was sent by email from an individual called 'Anna Peter' using an email address of 'celsolicitors@helptrack.site'.

Any business or transactions through 'celsolicitors@helptrack.site' is not undertaken by an individual or firm of solicitors authorised and regulated by the SRA.

Is there a genuine firm or person?

The SRA authorises and regulates a genuine firm of solicitors called Cheshire Estate and Legal Limited trading as CEL Solicitors based at 12th Floor 20 Chapel Street Liverpool L3 9AG. The telephone number is 0151 909 8212. The website is www.celsolicitors.co.uk and the email domain ends with @celsolicitors.co.uk.

Cheshire Estate and Legal Limited have confirmed that they do not have any connection with the email referred to in the above alert and no do employ a staff member called ‘Peter De Buysscher' or ‘Anna Peter'.

What should I do?

When a firm's or individual's identity has been copied exactly (or cloned), due diligence is necessary. If you receive correspondence claiming to be from the above firm(s) or individual(s), or information of a similar nature to that described, you should conduct your own due diligence by checking the authenticity of the correspondence by contacting the law firm directly by reliable and established means. You can contact the SRA to find out if individuals or firms are regulated and authorised by the SRA and verify an individual's or firm's practising details. Other verification methods, such as checking public records (e.g. telephone directories and company records) may be required in other circumstances.