ASONS Solicitors could face sanctions from a regulatory body if it finds evidence of misconduct.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), which supervises law firms in England and Wales, has confirmed that it is considering taking action against the business.

It was revealed yesterday that Asons has agreed to repay AXA Insurance almost £70,000 after admitting to falsely inflating its legal costs.

The SRA has the power to impose a range of sanctions, ranging from a low level rebuke up to a £2,000 fine.

If it believes that any alleged misconduct is more serious, then matters are referred to the independent Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal, where the SRA is the prosecuting authority and would have to prove the allegations to the criminal standard of proof.

An SRA spokesperson said: “We are aware of the situation and are gathering all relevant information before deciding on appropriate action.”

Asons admitted that it had systematically attempted to present false and misleading information on an organised basis to exaggerate bills sent to AXA.

After one case in 2015 in which the firm claimed one member of staff had six years’ experience rather than two, AXA unearthed 65 further cases where Asons had inflated their legal costs with false representations about the fee earners.

As part of the settlement for the 65 claims, Asons agreed to pay AXA more than £40,000 in legal costs and almost £70,000 in damages and interest.

Asons said that they took the matter “very seriously” and had reported it to the regulator, as well as undertaking an internal investigation and introducing new procedures to prevent a repeat.

The law firm is also at the centre of a huge row over a £300,000 grant it received from Bolton Council to help redevelop its new offices in Churchgate, as revealed in The Bolton News last year.

Opposition councillors are continuing to demand answers on what due diligence the council carried out before awarding the grant under emergency powers.

Cllr Roger Hayes, Liberal Democrat group leader, has submitted a number of questions on the subject to tonight’s Corporate and External Issues Scrutiny Committee, to which the council will provide written answers.

He said: “We still want to see what sensible checking the council did of Asons’ performance and what potential risks there would be in giving the grant to this company.

“We want to know what due diligence was done and how the company’s performance is being monitored, because the council claims that the justification for the grant was to keep employment in Bolton town centre.

“We also need to know how we might get our money back if the company were to fail. If that did happen, I would like to see us try to get our money back.”

The meeting, at which the council’s budget and the region’s devolution process will also be discussed, is being held in the council chamber at 5.30pm.