Fake ‘lawyer, detective’ in the dock

A self-styled “private detective” and “paralegal practitioner” from Windhoek made a third appearance in the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court this week, charged with purporting to be a legal practitioner.

The case against Alex Mabuku Kamwi, who plies his trade under the names of “Central Investigation Services cc” and “Nationwide Detectives & Professional Practitioners cc”, was once again postponed for further investigation when he appeared before Magistrate Maria Mahalie on Monday. Kamwi has to return to court on February 7 next year on the charge that he had contravened the Legal Practitioners Act by presenting himself as a legal practitioner.He remains free on bail of N$1 000.He also remains in business.This week a mobile billboard advertising the services that Kamwi and his businesses claim to be willing and able to perform was still standing on its usual prominent spot in a busy thoroughfare in the Windhoek city centre.It is the very same billboard that has contributed to the ire of the Law Society of Namibia, which laid the charge against Kamwi for allegedly doing work that according to the law is the exclusive domain of properly qualified and duly admitted legal practitioners.Among the services advertised are “litigation”, “draft complaints”, “draft answers/defensive pleadings”, and “draft wills” – all things that according to the Law Society’s complaint against Kamwi are services that he is not legally entitled to perform.The Law Society has also lodged a High Court case against Kamwi and his two close corporations.In that case, which is set to be heard on February 4 next year, the Law Society is asking the court to issue an interdict against Kamwi to forbid him from performing work that the law restricts to legal practitioners.Among the unlawful services that Kamwi is accused of having carried out, was to issue legal summonses for the repayment of debts owed to clients of his.In one case he has also been accused of having forged a Windhoek Magistrate’s Court order in an effort to get the Ministry of Basic Education and Culture to subtract N$400 from one of its staff members’ salary every month in order to pay off debts that a client of Kamwi’s claimed was due to it.Kamwi “poses an imminent and serious danger to the public,” since the public was induced to believe they were dealing with a qualified legal practitioner and were paying fees for services that he as an unqualified person was not entitled to perform, Law Society Director Retha Steinmann is claiming in an affidavit in support of the lawyers’ organisation’s case.Kamwi himself has also filed an application with the High Court in which he asked to be authorised to practice as “a paralegal professional practitioner”, based on the Constitution’s guarantee of the freedom to carry on any occupation, trade or business.The High Court did not grant his application.Kamwi has to return to court on February 7 next year on the charge that he had contravened the Legal Practitioners Act by presenting himself as a legal practitioner.He remains free on bail of N$1 000.He also remains in business.This week a mobile billboard advertising the services that Kamwi and his businesses claim to be willing and able to perform was still standing on its usual prominent spot in a busy thoroughfare in the Windhoek city centre.It is the very same billboard that has contributed to the ire of the Law Society of Namibia, which laid the charge against Kamwi for allegedly doing work that according to the law is the exclusive domain of properly qualified and duly admitted legal practitioners.Among the services advertised are “litigation”, “draft complaints”, “draft answers/defensive pleadings”, and “draft wills” – all things that according to the Law Society’s complaint against Kamwi are services that he is not legally entitled to perform.The Law Society has also lodged a High Court case against Kamwi and his two close corporations.In that case, which is set to be heard on February 4 next year, the Law Society is asking the court to issue an interdict against Kamwi to forbid him from performing work that the law restricts to legal practitioners.Among the unlawful services that Kamwi is accused of having carried out, was to issue legal summonses for the repayment of debts owed to clients of his.In one case he has also been accused of having forged a Windhoek Magistrate’s Court order in an effort to get the Ministry of Basic Education and Culture to subtract N$400 from one of its staff members’ salary every month in order to pay off debts that a client of Kamwi’s claimed was due to it.Kamwi “poses an imminent and serious danger to the public,” since the public was induced to believe they were dealing with a qualified legal practitioner and were paying fees for services that he as an unqualified person was not entitled to perform, Law Society Director Retha Steinmann is claiming in an affidavit in support of the lawyers’ organisation’s case.Kamwi himself has also filed an application with the High Court in which he asked to be authorised to practice as “a paralegal professional practitioner”, based on the Constitution’s guarantee of the freedom to carry on any occupation, trade or business.The High Court did not grant his application.