Law Society, Chief Justice but heads over thieving lawyer

STAFF REPORTER

MASERU — Tensions between the Law Society of Lesotho and Chief Justice Sakoane Sakoane have reached a boiling point following the Chief Justice’s recent criticisms of the society, prompting an urgent meeting among the country’s legal practitioners to address what they perceive as an attack on their integrity.

The situation came to a head after Chief Justice Sakoane dismissed a court application by the Law Society aimed at interdicting Advocate Thejane Thejane, who stands accused of defrauding his client, Matsépang Setala, of M262,000.

The funds, which were part of a M350,000 road accident compensation from the Lesotho National General Insurance (LNIG), had been entrusted to Thejane as Setala’s lawyer. However, instead of transferring the agreed balance and deducting legal fees, Thejane allegedly kept the entire amount for himself.

When Setala discovered that her lawyer had already received the funds, contrary to his claims that they were still pending, she sought the assistance of the Law Society.

The society acted swiftly, securing a court order to freeze Thejane’s account and seeking an interdict to prevent him from using the disputed funds. But in a surprising turn, Chief Justice Sakoane criticised the Law Society’s approach, dismissing their application as mere posturing.

He suggested that the society was “dancing to the gallery” and accused them of offering false hope to the aggrieved client. The Chief Justice argued that a civil suit would not suffice in addressing the alleged theft and insisted that the Law Society should have immediately reported the matter to the police for criminal investigation.

“You want me to instruct a thief to stop using the money they have stolen?” Justice Sakoane remarked pointedly. “Maybe you have forgotten that the law says society is formed under an act of Parliament, and the law gives you authority to take action against rogue lawyers to protect the nation.”

He further chastised the society for what he perceived as inaction, stating, “If they were serious about holding Adv. Thejane to account for the alleged theft, the Law Society should have reported the matter to court.”

The judge’s remarks have left the Law Society reeling. In response, the society convened an urgent special meeting yesterday, to address the Chief Justice’s comments and deliberate on their next steps.

In a memorandum addressed to all legal practitioners, the society’s Secretary, Advocate Ithabeleng Phamotse, called for a united front to discuss what they termed a “recent slew of attacks on the integrity of the law society by the Chief Justice.”

The memo also revealed that the meeting would cover the dismissal of admission petitions for new lawyers by the Chief Justice, as well as a contentious debate over the High Court Civil Litigation Rules of 2024, which were introduced under Justice Sakoane’s tenure.

The new rules, designed to streamline court processes and ensure that litigation is handled justly, speedily, and cost-effectively, have divided the legal community. Some practitioners argue that the rules have made the court processes prohibitively expensive and have caused confusion by abruptly altering established procedures. Complaints have also emerged that files are frequently returned from the registry for non-compliance, further slowing the wheels of justice.

Chief Justice Sakoane, in defending the new rules, has emphasised their importance in ensuring that cases are managed efficiently and that the real issues in disputes are resolved without unnecessary delays.

“The purpose and objectives of the rules are to enable judges to manage cases and facilitate the resolution of the real issues in disputes justly, speedily, efficiently, and cost-effectively as far as practicable,” he stated.