Graham and Others v Law Society of the Northern Provinces and Others (61790/2012) [2014] ZAGPPHC 496 (15 April 2014)

Graham and Others v Law Society of the Northern Provinces and Others (61790/2012) [2014] ZAGPPHC 496 (15 April 2014)

The Court found that the Law Society had not failed to discharge its statutory duties in investigating and prosecuting the complaint against the Bobroffs. The Law Society had followed prescribed procedures, referred the Faris report for consideration, and was not shown to be conflicted or acting in bad faith. The Court held that intervention or supervision by the Court was not warranted at this stage, as the disciplinary enquiry had not been completed and there was no evidence of irreparable harm or manifest procedural unfairness. The Road Accident Fund was granted leave to intervene due to its direct and substantial interest in the disciplinary process concerning RAF payments. The...

Citation
[2014] ZAGPPHC 496
Parties
Applicant: Jennifer Graham; Applicant: Matthew Graham; Applicant: Road Accident Fund; Respondent: Law Society of the Northern Provinces; Respondent: Ronald Bobroff and Partners Inc; Respondent: Ronald Bobroff; Respondent: Darren Bobroff
Court
North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
15 April 2014
Case Number
61790/2012
Procedural Posture
Review Application / Judgment After Hearing of Main and Counter Applications, Including Intervention Application
Outcome
Main application dismissed; disciplinary enquiry to proceed; Law Society and Bobroffs ordered to provide information and conduct inspection; each party to pay own costs.
Judges
SP Mothle
Legal Topics
Attorneys Act, Disciplinary Enquiry, Contingency Fee Agreements, Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, Overreaching, Trust Account Inspection
Civil Procedure Commercial and Corporate Administrative Law Attorneys Act Disciplinary Enquiry Contingency Fee Agreements Promotion of Administrative Justice Act Overreaching +1 more

Case Brief

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Parties

Jennifer Graham

Applicant

Matthew Graham

Applicant

Road Accident Fund

Applicant

Law Society of the Northern Provinces

Respondent

Ronald Bobroff and Partners Inc

Respondent

Ronald Bobroff

Respondent

Darren Bobroff

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Review Application / Judgment After Hearing of Main and Counter Applications, Including Intervention Application

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the Law Society failed to perform its statutory duties in investigating and prosecuting the complaint against the Bobroffs.
  2. 2 Whether the Court should intervene in or supervise the Law Society's Disciplinary Enquiry.
  3. 3 Whether the Bobroffs should be compelled to provide outstanding information and documents relevant to the complaint.

Ratio Decidendi

The Court found that the Law Society had not failed to discharge its statutory duties in investigating and prosecuting the complaint against the Bobroffs. The Law Society had followed prescribed procedures, referred the Faris report for consideration, and was not shown to be conflicted or acting in bad faith. The Court held that intervention or supervision by the Court was not warranted at this stage, as the disciplinary enquiry had not been completed and there was no evidence of irreparable harm or manifest procedural unfairness. The Road Accident Fund was granted leave to intervene due to its direct and substantial interest in the disciplinary process concerning RAF payments. The...

Court Disposition

Main application dismissed; disciplinary enquiry to proceed; Law Society and Bobroffs ordered to provide information and conduct inspection; each party to pay own costs.

Orders

  • The application for a declaratory order against the Law Society and for Court intervention or supervision of the Disciplinary Enquiry is dismissed.
  • The Disciplinary Enquiry appointed by the Law Society is ordered to convene within sixty (60) calendar days from the date of this order.