The Law Society of SA (LSSA) is concerned at allegations made against attorneys at last week’s joint sitting of Parliament’s Appropriations and the Health Committees, and is seeking a meeting with the committees to discuss what it claims are unsubstantiated and sensationalist allegations with regard to medical negligence claims.

At the meeting, MPS called for a tightening of laws to stop the activities of lawyers involved in multibillion-rand lawsuits against provincial government departments, notes Legalbrief.

They called for a full-scale investigation, accusing lawyers of turning provincial health departments into another Road Accident Fund with their large claims. ‘Parasitic’ and ‘criminal’ lawyers were hanging out in hospital waiting rooms, waiting for babies to be born in difficult births so that they could file damages claims against the state, MPs heard. In a statement yesterday, the LSSA says ‘the country is still traumatised … by the death of the 94 mentally and physically disabled patients as a result of the failing healthcare system, which included the neglect of the patients.

We urge the Health Ministry to focus on addressing the dire skills shortages and poor conditions, as well as the duty of care owed by healthcare professionals and medical facilities to patients, rather than on curtailing their right to fair and legitimate compensation’.

LSSA co-chairperson, Mvuzo Notyesi said: ‘Attorneys cannot be blamed for simply carrying out their duties on behalf of victims who have been wronged.’ He adds: ‘The LSSA has consistently maintained that legal practitioners cannot ‘manufacture’ malpractice injuries and claims – these are substantiated by experts and then by the courts,’ Notyesi notes. The LSSA had requested to meet the Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, on several occasions to discuss this issue.

LSSA statement