Malesela Teffo should be jailed for contempt: Zuma case cited by Legal Practice Council

The application by the Legal Practice Council (LPC) to declare disbarred advocate Malesela Teffo in contempt of court was postponed indefinitely by the Pretoria high court on Tuesday when Teffo’s legal team made a late appearance after proceedings had started.

The LPC lodged the application on May 9 after Teffo made court appearances as an advocate despite being struck off in September last year. The LPC said his appearances were in contempt of a court order of September 2022 when he was removed from the roll of legal practitioners. 

Last week, Teffo made two appearances before the Pretoria high court during the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial. Judge Tshifhiwa Maumela ordered he be removed from court on Thursday. After the court appearances, the council said Teffo remained disbarred. 

Teffo’s attorneys filed a notice to oppose the contempt of court application on Friday, but later withdrew as his attorneys. 

Before Teffo’s legal team arrived on Tuesday, the matter was treated as one without opposition. 

Advocate for the LPC, Mfesane Ka-Siboto, argued before judge Harshila Kooverjie that Teffo should be jailed for contempt because he continued to appear before court as an advocate despite being disbarred.

Initially, the LPC had asked for a suspended sentence. 

Ka-Siboto referred to the Jacob Zuma contempt case in the Constitutional Court in 2021, where the court sentenced the former president to a 15-month jail term for failure to honour summons to appear before the State Capture Commission of Inquiry.

He said in another case in 2021, Teffo was given a R50,000 fine by the labour court in contempt proceedings instituted by the SA Police Service, where Teffo had not paid that fine and was sentenced to three months' imprisonment by the labour court.   

“He continues to act as an advocate. We say the court has inherent jurisdiction to order direct imprisonment. It is no different to the Zuma matter where he did not avail himself to court.” 

Gift Shakoane SC, appeared for Teffo after proceedings had begun and asked that Teffo be allowed an opportunity to file answering papers in the application.

Kooverjie suggested that the parties draft an agreement, which will be made an order of the court, postponing the matter. The order will give Teffo's lawyers time to file an answering affidavit within five days. The LPC must file a replying affidavit five days thereafter.

Kooverjie ordered that the parties file their heads of argument by no later than June 2. Parties will then approach the office of the deputy judge president for the special allocation of the case. 

Kooverjie said a decision on who should pay costs for Tuesday’s postponement should be reserved for determination later.

TimesLIVE 

Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.