Nick Gould “removed from professional duties following serious concerns”

Nick Gould

Aria Grace Law have issued a longer statement, following a piece I published about Nick Gould on Friday.

It’s worth reading in full.

Formal Statement from Aria Grace Law CIC

We issue this statement in response to the article published by Mr Nick Wallis on 6 June 2025 concerning Mr Nick Gould and the legal services he claims to have provided to former clients of Aria Grace Law, including Ms Seema Misra.

Aria Grace Law CIC was founded to uphold integrity, transparency, and the rights of those failed by institutions. The matters reported are deeply concerning and require a clear and unequivocal response.

Mr Gould ceased all association with Aria Grace Law in January 2025. He was removed from professional duties following serious concerns regarding his conduct. Since that time, he has had no authority to act in our name, use our materials, or represent the firm in any capacity.

Where our name has appeared in connection with these actions, whether in client correspondence, invoicing or documentation, we are actively investigating whether such use was compliant with our rules and ethical obligations. Our internal review is ongoing and focused on ensuring that any vulnerable individuals were afforded the protections to which they are entitled.

To the extent that any client relied upon communications that appeared to originate from Aria Grace, we consider that highly regrettable and in direct conflict with the values on which this firm is built. We invite any affected party to contact us directly and we will respond with care and urgency.

With respect to the mention of our former billing manager, Mr Mark French, we confirm that his involvement in communications with Ms Misra took place under the instruction of Mr Gould and without the authorisation of senior management. Following confirmation of those facts, Mr French’s relationship with Aria Grace has been terminated.

For the avoidance of doubt, Aria Grace did not authorise, ratify, or benefit from the pursuit of any payment from Ms Misra or any other vulnerable individual under the arrangements described. Where this occurred, it was without our knowledge or consent and stands in direct and complete opposition to our standards and our purpose.

Mr Gould does not and must not be taken to speak for Aria Grace. Any invocation of our name in connection with his private undertakings is entirely without basis and is explicitly disavowed.

We remain committed to representing the vulnerable, to challenging injustice wherever it appears, and to holding ourselves to the same high standards we demand of others. That includes within our own profession.

Aria Grace stands with the victims of the Post Office scandal. We honour their resilience and we condemn any conduct that seeks to exploit their trust or harm their recovery. We are taking steps to ensure that this matter is addressed fully, transparently and with compassion.

ENDS

Read “Lawyer threatens legal action against victim of Horizon scandalhere.


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25 responses to “Nick Gould “removed from professional duties following serious concerns””

  1. Cherry Morgan avatar

    I would like to think this fantastic result was brought about by a company’s integrity and sence of justice and not the fact that their PR was pulling the strings to take the heat away from a brilliant piece of fighting journalism
    Maybe I am just sceptical in my old age
    A GREAT result well done .

  2. Anthony Watson avatar
    Anthony Watson

    Following on from my comment of 10/6/25, I note that according to the Law Society Gazette, Nick Gould was a corporate partner in Aria Grace Law, and that lawyers at Aria Grace Law are entitled to receive 90% of the fees they generate. It makes me wonder if Aria Grace are the innocents they are trying to portray themselves as, as they appear to exist solely in order to maximise their lawyers’ earnings, which of course will count as legitimate expenses, and not as profits for the benefit of the community.

  3. Great that this has been exposed by your article and research Nick@nickwallis.com fantastic work!
    Sad to note that some lawyers are untrustworthy chancers preying on vulnerable people who had already suffered so much from that other “most trusted” organisation The Post Office! It all needs to be finally settled and end the misery.

  4. Anthony Watson avatar

    The statement raises questions regarding Mr French’s instructions. How was Mr Gould able to issue instructions to Mr French if he was no longer employed by Aria Grace Law? Does the fact that Mr French was a senior employee of Aria Grace mean that they are responsible for fraudulent actions he carried out in their name?

  5. Daphne Dennis avatar

    It would be great if you could look into the amount received by each of the barristers during the inquiry. I think some of the theatrics could have been reduced to reach an earlier end to the inquiry and more focus on redress. My instinct says there were a number of very big paydays – especially for the “heroic” Beers, Steins and Henrys.

  6. Well Done, Aria Grace.

  7. Well done Aria Grace. we will remember how professional and caring you are in this matter.

  8. love this! up next…when are the SRA and BSB gonna get after all the awful lawyers from PO and beyond?

  9. Incredible work Nick, very well done!

  10. Incredible work Nick, very well done. So looking forward to your new book.

  11. That is amazing, Nick, you have done an amazing job.

  12. If you ask our lawyer PM what his first duty in that profession was, he might whisper ‘to get paid and to win, in that order’. So that statement, clearly written to limit damage to the firm while exemplifying the saintly qualities of the remaining apples in the barrel, had no effect on me other than the immanent possibility of revisiting my breakfast.
    I wonder how many other hard-nosed actions carried out by this man but well away from media interest, have gone unpunished on the high altar of profit. Surely the firm that employed him must take responsibility for his actions, yet the firm does not apologise, instead going to great effort to offload all responsibility.
    When lawyers take the lion’s share of any compensation wrestled from an organisation even more brutal than their own, you know compassion is the last thing on their minds. Like politicians, they trade in words, and words mean profit. All else is dross.

    1. For balance, it should be noted that Keir Starmer assisted in the McLibel case pro bono.

    2. Gordon (if that is you real name) – your comment is wildly inaccurate.

      Keir Starmer is a man of public service. He did not seek to maximise earnings. He did not go to work for a city law firm or spend his career as a private barrister. He worked in public service as DPP on a salary that was a tiny fraction of what he would have earnt as a private barrister. And he acted on the McLibel case pro-bono.

      Please withdraw your comment and focus on facts. The fact that you do not agree with his politics does not entitle you to make up your own facts.

  13. John Trevelyan avatar
    John Trevelyan

    Congratulations Nick, looks like a comprehensive result and a direct result of your journalism.

  14. Well done,Nick, for exposing this. As if Seema Misra and so many other Horizon victims haven’t suffered enough already.

  15. Richard Rickard avatar
    Richard Rickard

    Remind me….. I believe I read somewhere that the legal professionals have already received payments in excess of the payments made to the victims of the PO Horizon scandal ?
    Ref: Jarndyce v Jarndyce (Bleak House?Charles Dickens)

  16. Hmmm, I wonder if Aria Grace’s statement will change the aggressive approach of Impact Law and Leveretts?

  17. Well done Nick for bringing this into the open. Looking forward to reading your book when it is published.

  18. Wow, this clearly demonstrates the power of great journalism – super work Nick Wallis

  19. Wow, the power of journalism to hold people to account in action.

    ..just wow!

  20. Well said Aria Grace Law. Gould’s £60K demand or any future “invoice” he works up to support it must be minutely scrutinised. Lawyers must know they cannot get away with such egregious demands.

  21. Wallace and Aria Grace 1 (won) VS Gould and French 0 (nil points)

    Could Nick W. publish his explanation to Mr Gould of what a Journalist does please. Or some redacted or summary version. I look forward to reading what Prof. Richard Moorhead (legal ethics) has to say on his substack thread about Mr Gould. The list of PO scandal legals, whose ethics are doubtful, continues to grow.

    Janet and Tracy it would seem paid Mr Gould. Are they now subject to a non-disclosure agreement (NDA)? Perhaps there was a big discount if they promised not to speak out? Sometimes it is best to agree to the unacceptable, just to get people off your back. Hard enough for most of us, but after what these people have been through!

    Wishing all those affected all the best.

  22. Would this have happened without Nick’s involvement?

  23. Elizabeth Moyse avatar
    Elizabeth Moyse

    Congratulations Nick!

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