The U.K.'s Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) is owed nearly £3.5 million in outstanding tribunal fines – the equivalent to more than three years' worth of fines levied by the public body.

As of March this year, a total of £3,470,275.15 is still to be collected by HM Treasury on behalf of the SDT, according to figures obtained by Law.com's Legal Week via a freedom of information request.

The tribunal itself has no responsibility for fine enforcement, with the process entirely managed by the Treasury.

The current figure represents an increase of more than 30% since 2017, when the SDT was short £2,627,913.34.

Last year, the Treasury collected just £528,393 – far below the £1.4 million sum collected in the previous year. A further £61,326 was written off as unobtainable.

The past three years have seen a number of blockbuster fines, including £250,000 and £500,000 charges levied against White & Case and Locke Lord respectively.

In 2018, the tribunal ordered a total of £1.18 million in fines, an increase of 190% on just two years previously and 550% higher than 2014.

Earlier this year, former Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer partner Ryan Beckwith was fined £35,000, alongside an additional £200,000 in legal costs, over allegations of non-consensual sexual misconduct.

According to Iain Miller, a legal services regulation partner at Kingsley Napley, the quantity of unpaid fines is unsurprising. "Most of the people subject to costs and fines frankly can't afford to pay them," he said.

"Many will have ceased practicing or are in financial difficulties and you'd expect a fairly high level of default."