A CAMPAIGNING lawyer who fought to stop the closure of Staffordshire County Council care homes has been cleared of professional misconduct.

Yvonne Hossack had been accused of six breaches of rules governing solicitors' conduct.

But she was cleared by a Solicitors' Disciplinary Tribunal in London yesterday.

Two years ago, Miss Hossack worked with action group Rage to fight the county council's decision to close all but seven of its elderly care homes. She started legal proceedings, ultimately doomed to fail, to halt the closure programme.

But the county council, along with Northamptonshire and Hull authorities, subsequently criticised the 53-year-old from Kettering.

Defending herself earlier this week, she had told the hearing: "The people who have a direct interest in these proceedings are the local authorities who may otherwise face challenges to their cuts to services for disabled people."

Speaking outside of the tribunal yesterday, Miss Hossack said: "I feel fantastic – I can't tell you. It's like a miracle. At one point I thought I was becoming clinically depressed. I'd lost a lost of sleep. It had obviously put a great strain on me."

Rage campaigner Simone Christiaan, who fought to allow her daughter to remain a resident at Springhill Hostel in Leek, had dealings with Miss Hossack during the campaign.

The 43-year-old from Leek said: "I'm glad she has been cleared. We can't fault her for the work she did. But she has a tendency to upset people."

Billy Welsh, of Madeley Heath, led the campaign to save Lea House care home in Madeley.

The 53-year-old said: "I'm really pleased with the result. She worked tirelessly for the cause.

"I felt she was being picked on for speaking her mind and helping the old people to stay in their homes. It was obvious Staffordshire County Council was not happy with her.

"She was a good solicitor: very conscientious and doing work for what she believed in."

Panel chairman Dominic Green announced that the misconduct charges had not been proved, to gasps of "yes" from Miss Hossack's supporters.

She had always rejected the allegations against her, which included accepting instructions from third parties without seeking clarification of the position and providing confidential information to third parties.

Mr Green said that, although all six allegations were not proven, the third charge, relating to disclosing information to a third party, did breach a rule at the lowest level.

The case was brought by the Solicitors' Regulation Authority (SRA).

During the hearing, a number of witnesses praised Miss Hossack's work, including Home Secretary Alan Johnson in his capacity as a Hull MP.

A spokesman for the SRA said: "We will examine the tribunal's written account of the hearing before making any comment."

A Staffordshire county council spokesman said: "The SRA has now considered the evidence and made its decision accordingly, which the council respects."