Ms Main practised as a barrister with a focus on family law matters and was approved as a Family Legal Aid Service (FLAS) provider in 2014. Between 2017 and 2022, Ms Main made 1278 individual fraudulent claims to the Ministry of Justice under the Family Legal Advice Service scheme, falsely representing that she had given advice to named clients. The majority of the individuals claimed for were former clients who had received legal aid services for unrelated matters. Others were names she had invented or individuals that she had never acted for (and who were not aware that their names were being used in this manner). The Tribunal noted the conduct was “planned and sustained”. When first challenged, Ms Main (through her lawyer) described the accusation as defamatory and continued to commit fraud.

Ms Main was prosecuted by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) as a result of her conduct. On 1 April 2025, Ms Main pleaded guilty to one representative charge of obtaining by deception (relating to fraudulent claims under the FLAS system) and one representative charge of obstructing the SFO’s investigation. On 9 October 2025, Ms Main was sentenced to three years imprisonment in relation to the charges but has appealed this sentence.

The Tribunal found Ms Main used her position as a lawyer to obtain money she was not entitled to and in doing so breached her obligation to uphold the rule of law and facilitate the administration of justice. The Tribunal considered lawyers of good standing would regard her conduct as disgraceful and dishonourable and determined she had engaged in misconduct of the most grievous kind.

In terms of penalty, the Tribunal did not consider Ms Main’s personal circumstances (including her claims of poor health and financial pressure) provided sufficient grounds to excuse her misconduct. The Tribunal noted Ms Main pleaded guilty to the criminal charges, however; it considered her narrative in response to the charge tended to deflect and fell short of accepting her wrongdoing. Given the persistence of her dishonest actions and inability to face her misconduct squarely, the Tribunal could not rule out the risk of reoffending. The Tribunal found Ms Main’s actions place her beyond any prospect of continuing to be a lawyer. Ms Main was struck off the roll of barristers and solicitors and ordered to pay costs.