City Lawyer Apologises After Incident at Lib Dem Candidate's Office
Jonathan Metliss, a founding partner of SJ Berwin, stormed into the office of Luciana Berger on Friday.
November 13, 2019 at 07:49 AM
3 minute read
A well-known London lawyer has "unreservedly apologised" but insisted he has "legitimate concerns", after tearing posters off the walls of a Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate's office and launching into an angry rant about her.
Police were called to the office of Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate Luciana Berger on Friday after former SJ Berwin partner Jonathan Metliss stormed into her office and began shouting abuse about her, according to the Jewish Chronicle.
The Chronicle reported that Metliss went into the office of Berger, who is the candidate for Finchley and Golders Green in the upcoming General Election, called her "evil" and "a disgrace" and began tearing campaign posters from windows.
A spokesperson for Berger's office said in a statement to Legal Week, the U.K. arm of Law.com, that the details in the Jewish Chronicle's article were correct, but declined to make any further comment.
Metliss, who co-founded legacy firm SJ Berwin in 1982 and is now chairman of eight-partner London firm Axiom Stone, subsequently issued a response saying he "had no idea" that the office he went into was the headquarters of the Liberal Democrat campaign.
He said: "As I was walking to synagogue on Friday evening, I dropped into the office of a friend and business associate whom I have known for many years. I saw a Lib Dem poster in the window and went in to tell him that he should not be supporting Luciana Berger. I am a supporter of the work that Mike Freer does as the Conservative MP for Finchley and Golders Green.
"I had no idea that it was the Lib Dem campaign headquarters, nor that it was being used by their new candidate Ms Berger. There was no signage or any other indication to suggest that it was. Even after I went inside that was still not apparent to me.
"Ms Berger was NOT present in the office at that time. My interaction with my friend lasted only seconds but it resulted in me tearing down a poster as I walked out, which was an ill-judged and regrettable act on my part."
He added that he returned to the office on Monday evening and apologised to his friend. He said Berger and her team were present during the apology, which was accepted by his friend.
He said: "Whilst I acknowledge that my outburst was ill judged, nobody was harmed or threatened and, save for a torn poster, no damage was caused. I have unreservedly apologised for any distress that I caused."
Metliss went on to say: "Behind this though is a legitimate concern shared by many members of the Jewish community that Ms Berger is campaigning for the Lib Dems in a constituency represented by Mr Freer, a Conservative, who is a longstanding and supportive member of the Jewish community and the State of Israel.
"The effect of Ms Berger campaigning for this seat may be to split the Jewish vote and in doing so, assist Labour in winning the seat and bolstering Jeremy Corbyn's prospects of becoming Prime Minister, which is a frightening prospect for the UK Jewish community."
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