FORMER ATTORNEY ORDERED TO REPAY LEGAL PRACTIONERS FIDELITY FUND

11 NOVEMBER 2025

FORMER ATTORNEY ORDERED TO REPAY LEGAL PRACTIONERS FIDELITY FUND

Bellville, South Africa: The Bellville Commercial Crimes Court has ordered a former practising attorney, Mogamat Rushdie Lagardien, to repay R1.46 million to the Legal Practitioners Fidelity Fund following his conviction on four counts of fraud. The court also sentenced Lagardien to ten years' direct imprisonment wholly suspended for five years on condition that he is not convicted of fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud and theft, or an attempt to commit any of the latter offences committed during the period of suspension, and for which the accused is sentenced to a period of unsuspended imprisonment without the option of a fine.

The court ordered the accused to pay the amount yesterday, 10 November 2025, and it has been paid in full. The sentence follows a plea and sentencing agreement reached between the State and the accused. The former attorney was the Director of Adama and Partners trading as Lagardien Incorporated. He was struck off the roll of attorneys on 17 October 2014, at the High Court of South Africa: Western Cape Division on 17 October 2014.

He was obliged in terms of the provisions of the Attorneys Act 53 of 1979 to open and hold a trust account for the purpose of practising as an attorney. He held the trust account in the name of Adams and Partners Incorporated t/a Adams and Partners Incorporated. In the course and scope of his practice as an attorney, the accused received monies which he was obliged to hold in trust on behalf of his clients. These funds could only be received into the trust account. Monies were received pursuant to the accused and/or the firm doing inter alia – representing clients in civil matters where payments made were received into the trust account on behalf of the client; acting as conveyancing attorneys in respect of sales of immovable properties where payments were received into the trust account.

The accused decided to misappropriate funds paid by clients and/or other parties into the trust account and used them for his own personal benefit. The fidelity fund received four claims against the trust account of Lagardien Inc in the amounts of R350 000, R560 000, R387 319 and R240 000, which totalled over R1.5 million. The monies were supposed to be paid to the clients on finalisation of transactions for which the accused and/or the firm had provided legal representation. He admitted that he knew that monies paid into his trust account would not be held in trust, and he would not reimburse the clients but would use them for personal use. He admitted that his actions caused the Legal Practitioners Fidelity Fund to reimburse the clients.

In the agreement, Senior State Adv Siphokazi Makanda argued that the accused, as a practising attorney at the time of the commission of the offences, was in a position of trust and his actions had brought the legal profession into disrepute.

The NPA welcomes the sentence.

Issued by:

Eric Ntabazalila

Regional Communications Manager

Western Cape

Tel: (021) 487 7308

Mobile: 073 062 1222

National Prosecuting Authority