We are currently buying our council house. We secured a mortgage and the house purchase was about to be completed. The solicitor requested the mortgage funds from the lender before we had signed the mortgage agreement. He received the funds and has now been remanded in custody charged with murder. We are due to make the first mortgage payment in 4 days' time but the house purchase hasn't gone through with the council so they still own the house. Who is liable for this money? Should our solicitor have been able to request the funds before we had signed the mortgage agreement? What do we do now?