Interim managers appointed to Legal Action

The Charity Commission has appointed interim managers to the charity Legal Action.

Paul Ridout and Con Alexander of Veale Wasbrough Vizards LLP are acting as joint interim managers of the charity, as a “temporary and protective measure”. The interim managers will have all the powers and duties of trustees.

The move follows a statutory inquiry into the charity, announced in October last year.

The managers will take over the management and control of the administration of the charity and its property, review any on-going activities, end any inappropriate activities, review the charity’s finances, and report to the commission making recommendations on the future operation of the charity and the application of its property.

Legal Action, registered charity number 1100780 and also known as Charles Henry, has objects including providing legal facilities to people who would otherwise not be able to afford them.

When it announced the inquiry the commission said it had been engaging with Legal Action since 2010. It wrote to the charity in March 2014 setting out its findings and conclusions and issuing an action plan. The plan set out outstanding regulatory concerns, the action required to resolve them, and the timescale for completing the action.

However, the regulator said its concerns escalated after monitoring identified that Legal Action had failed to make a satisfactory response to its findings and conclusions, and not implemented or agreed to implement the action plan.