Lawyer faces legal action for failing to pay client

AN Oshakati-based lawyer is facing legal action for failing to hand over N$107 000 that the Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) Fund paid to his client, an accident victim.

The money was paid into the law firm’s trust account last year. New lawyers for accident victim Dr Samsom Awuma Repones Mijoro confirmed on Friday that they were preparing an urgent High Court application against Slyken Makando, in a case that serves to highlight lawyers’ complicity in road accident claims.Mijoro’s lawyer, Sisa Namandje, said the frustrated doctor had given him urgent instructions to file a High Court case urging Makando to pay.Makando, according to correspondence between himself and Namandje law firm, made numerous promises to pay, but never did.Makando, according to bank deposit slips and correspondence with Mijoro’s lawyers, received the money in December 2003 to pay for his client’s medical expenses and suffering.But he never informed Mijoro that the MVA had paid over the claim into the trust account of Makando’s law firm.He was supposed to deduct his fees and then pay the rest to Mijoro.Mijoro, after becoming suspicious, conducted the MVA earlier this year, investigated the matter further, and became aware that the money had been paid.Even when the MVA inquired why he had not paid the money to his client, Makando pleaded ignorance about the transfer, instead saying the account number listed did not belong to his law firm.Indeed, the last digit of the account number was mistakenly written as three instead of eight.But nevertheless, the MVA, in its letter to Makando, said: “It is not the first time that the MVA has learnt that payments of claimant are not being transmitted.”MVA Chef Executive Officer Jerry Muadinohamba could not be reached for comment last week.However, he has said in the past that his organisation has written to the Law Society to rein in the members for the attempts to rip-off clients or raid the MVA fund, which was set up to help cover for the costs of accident victims.The MVA has long complained about lawyers who overcharge clients for what should be simple accident claims or simply pocketing the money and leaving victims under the impression that their claims have not been paid.But in some case, the MVA has said that unscrupulous lawyers have colluded with people to submit claims of inflated accident reports or outrightly fraudulent non-existent claims.Road accidents have run the MVA into huge losses of more than N$80 million in the past two years, and N$520 million “actuarial deficits”.The Namibian understands that the MVA was conducting forensic investigation, which have already uncovered “systematic fraud perpetrated through fraudulent road accident claims.Makando on Thursday promised to get in touch with The Namibian to respond to the queries, but could not be reached by Friday.He has not returned messages left on his cellphone.The Law Society said it needed more time to respond to queries about what measures it has in place to safeguard the interests of its members’ clients in MVA cases.Dr Mijoro, who was based at Okahao, in the Omusati Region, last week said he knew of another MVA claimant who was in a similar position but did not know what procedures to follow to find out whether his money was paid.Mijoro said the Law Society referred him to the Disciplinary Committee in the Ministry of Justice, which is another statutory body dealing with the ethical conduct of lawyers.The Disciplinary Committee could not be reached for comment.New lawyers for accident victim Dr Samsom Awuma Repones Mijoro confirmed on Friday that they were preparing an urgent High Court application against Slyken Makando, in a case that serves to highlight lawyers’ complicity in road accident claims.Mijoro’s lawyer, Sisa Namandje, said the frustrated doctor had given him urgent instructions to file a High Court case urging Makando to pay.Makando, according to correspondence between himself and Namandje law firm, made numerous promises to pay, but never did.Makando, according to bank deposit slips and correspondence with Mijoro’s lawyers, received the money in December 2003 to pay for his client’s medical expenses and suffering.But he never informed Mijoro that the MVA had paid over the claim into the trust account of Makando’s law firm.He was supposed to deduct his fees and then pay the rest to Mijoro.Mijoro, after becoming suspicious, conducted the MVA earlier this year, investigated the matter further, and became aware that the money had been paid.Even when the MVA inquired why he had not paid the money to his client, Makando pleaded ignorance about the transfer, instead saying the account number listed did not belong to his law firm.Indeed, the last digit of the account number was mistakenly written as three instead of eight.But nevertheless, the MVA, in its letter to Makando, said: “It is not the first time that the MVA has learnt that payments of claimant are not being transmitted.”MVA Chef Executive Officer Jerry Muadinohamba could not be reached for comment last week.However, he has said in the past that his organisation has written to the Law Society to rein in the members for the attempts to rip-off clients or raid the MVA fund, which was set up to help cover for the costs of accident victims.The MVA has long complained about lawyers who overcharge clients for what should be simple accident claims or simply pocketing the money and leaving victims under the impression that their claims have not been paid.But in some case, the MVA has said that unscrupulous lawyers have colluded with people to submit claims of inflated accident reports or outrightly fraudulent non-existent claims.Road accidents have run the MVA into huge losses of more than N$80 million in the past two years, and N$520 million “actuarial deficits”.The Namibian understands that the MVA was conducting forensic investigation, which have already uncovered “systematic fraud perpetrated through fraudulent road accident claims.Makando on Thursday promised to get in touch with The Namibian to respond to the queries, but could not be reached by Friday.He has not returned messages left on his cellphone.The Law Society said it needed more time to respond to queries about what measures it has in place to safeguard the interests of its members’ clients in MVA cases.Dr Mijoro, who was based at Okahao, in the Omusati Region, last week said he knew of another MVA claimant who was in a similar position but did not know what procedures to follow to find out whether his money was paid.Mijoro said the Law Society referred him to the Disciplinary Committee in the Ministry of Justice, which is another statutory body dealing with the ethical conduct of lawyers.The Disciplinary Committee could not be reached for comment.