Two men posing as qualified lawyers have been sentenced for defrauding families seeking legal advice and support.

David Abbott, of Arundel Road, Peacehaven, Brighton, and Richard Hayes, of St Aubyns, Hove, both 50, were sentenced at Lewes Crown Court today for defrauding families by pretending to be qualified barristers.

At a previous hearing Abbott had pleaded guilty to seven counts of fraud and Hayes had pleaded to one count of fraud.

Abbott was jailed for two years and three months, concurrently on each count against him, while Hayes was ordered to do 250 hours' community service.

They pleaded guilty to representing themselves as a qualified and practising Barrister and Solicitor respectively.

At the time of the offences in 2011, they were running a company called Consumer Family Legal Services, which changed its name to SEN Legal Services, based in Queens Road, Brighton.

They defrauded three families who had hired them for them in Family Court proceedings for Special Educational Needs tribunals for their young children.

One family was from Battle, East Sussex, and the other two were from Nottinghamshire and Warwickshire.

Prior to these offences coming to light, Abbott had been disbarred by the Bar Standards Board on March 7 2012 for professional misconduct.

Detective Constable Brad Lozynski of Brighton CID said; "Abbott and Hayes exploited these vulnerable and trusting families, who had simply searched the Internet for specialist legal advice. They gave every appearance of being genuine, but at the last minute failed to attend court, leaving the victims high and dry with no valid legal advice, and having incurred considerable expense.

"We were glad to be able to help them achieve justice, but this case does serve as a warning to people planning legal action that they should be careful in their research in deciding who to retain, and not rely purely on web searches. If you are in any doubt, always check with the Bar Standards Board."