a day ago
Magic circle executive banned for sexual misconduct at karaoke bar
A former employee at one of London's most prestigious law firms has been banned from working in the legal profession after touching a junior colleague's bottom in a karaoke bar.
Vivek Ramsaroop has been punished after the solicitors' watchdog found that he grabbed a fellow worker's waist and started 'rubbing himself' against her while on a work night.
At the time, he was an employee at the magic circle firm Linklaters.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has ruled that the incident, which took place in November 2022, amounted to 'serious sexual misconduct' and banned him from working for other law firms in Britain.
As part of its findings, the SRA said Mr Ramsaroop harassed a junior colleague, referred to only as 'Employee A', at a social event organised for Linklaters' London office.
The SRA said: 'Whilst at the karaoke bar, Mr Ramsaroop approached Employee A and stood closely to her talking and said the words 'you're gorgeous' and 'you're amazing'.'
He then put his arms around her waist and kissed the side of her face for several seconds, the regulator said.
'Shortly afterwards, Mr Ramsaroop started dancing directly behind Employee A, grabbed her waist with both hands and touched her bottom,' the SRA added.
Mr Ramaswoop then 'started rubbing himself against' his colleague on the dancefloor 'with his pelvis pressed against Employee A's bottom,' the watchdog said.
During his time at Linklaters, Mr Ramaswoop – whose last known address was in Johannesburg – was involved in Linklaters' legal practice but not employed as a solicitor. He specialises in mergers and acquisitions.
The SRA said Mr Ramaswoop's conduct constituted 'serious sexual misconduct' as it involved repeated physical contact directed towards a junior colleague.
As a result, the regulator issued a so-called 'Section 43' notice against Mr Ramaswoop, which restricts firms from employing individuals deemed to have committed misconduct, even if they are not working as lawyers.
Mr Ramaswoop was also ordered to pay a portion of the SRA's £1,350 legal bill.
The regulator says it expects law firms to take a 'zero tolerance' approach to sexual misconduct, which covers any abuse of a person's 'professional position to initiate or pursue an improper sexual or emotional relationship'.
Linklaters is one of Britain's four 'magic circle' law firms. Last year, it paid its partners an average £1.9m, while its newly-qualified lawyers received starting salaries of £150,000.
A Linklaters spokesman said: 'This relates to an incident involving a former employee who had joined the firm a few weeks prior. We had reported the matter to the SRA and the individual left the firm with immediate effect.'
