Recently-married Veronica Hyland, who used her maiden name of Wilkinson, spent thousands on plastic surgery, designer clothes, pets and a £37,000 Audi within days of the death of Les Carrier, the former chairman of Wednesbury steel firm FH Lloyds.

The 86-year-old had lived most of his married life with his wife Doris, known as Dot, in Codsall where Wilkinson was head of the probate department at the local office of law firm Dunham, Brindley and Linn, now DBL Talbots.

The crooked 50-year-old, from Priory Road, Stone, forged a document to gain power of attorney over 90-year-old Mrs Carrier’s financial affairs and used it to plunder her bank and building society accounts following the death of her husband from cancer.

Mr Richard Nicholson, chairman of the professional tribunal that yesterday ordered Wilkinson be struck off as a solicitor and made to pay £9,571 costs, said: “Her behaviour was outrageous. It is hard to imagine a more serious breach of trust.”

Mother-of-two Wilkinson struck after discovering that Mr Carrier was worth more than £1 million with no close family or other dependants.

It was the sort of victim the solicitor had been dreaming of since secretly running up £60,000 debts, but she then tried to manipulate a legal secretary at the firm where she worked into unwittingly forging key legal documents needed for the scam.

She refused to help and later broke down and told bosses what was going on.

They launched an investigation that uncovered the swindle and also discovered Wilkinson had pocketed cash after substituting her own name on cheques paid to the law firm by clients.

She admitted 16 charges of theft or fraud and was jailed for two years four months at Stafford Crown Court last December by Recorder Miss Diane Cotton QCm who told her: “You have brought disgrace on yourself, your firm and your profession.”

Wilkinson, who had a confiscation order made at the court for £38,500 of the stolen cash that could be traced, was unable to attend yesterday’s tribunal because she is still behind bars.

Peter Hill, a partner in the firm of solicitors who employed Wilkinson, said: “The case affected morale and profitability at the firm.”