Sohail Chohan and his company Sterling Design and Management Ltd has been convicted of seven counts of the criminal offence of misusing the title ‘architect’
Sohail Chohan was charged for misusing the title ‘architect’ on his LinkedIn profile and Companies House listing.
Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard how Chohan was carrying out business using the title ‘architect’ on drawings, their online presence and listings at Companies House despite not being registered as an architect. Chohan continued these offences despite numerous warnings from ARB, the UK regulator of architects.
Taking into account the defendant’s financial situation and his early guilty plea, the District Judge imposed penalties totalling £1,700 in addition to the criminal conviction.
In regulating misusing the title ‘architect’ ARB’s objective is to limit the harm as swiftly and effectively as possible. Chohan and Sterling Design and Management Ltd will have 28 days to make the necessary changes. ARB will continue to monitor their trading style and take further appropriate action as necessary.
The ARB hopes that the criminal convictions, fines and the negative publicity associated with title misuse prosecutions will act as a deterrent for those who may otherwise have used the title illegally.
Policy on misuse of the title ‘architect’
ARB has two objectives which sit beneath its statutory responsibilities under the Act:
- Protect the users and potential users of architects’ services
- Support architects through regulation.
The Architects Act 1997 creates an offence of using the title “architect” in business or practice whilst not on the Register, and places a statutory responsibility on ARB in relation to regulating the use of that title.
ARB works to prevent misuse of title (rather than solely prosecute) and to raise awareness of the restrictions on using the title “architect”.
If the title “architect” is used correctly, then the public can be assured that when they are using the services of someone described as an architect, they are using a genuine registered architect.
