The Hawks are investigating a Gqeberha lawyer for allegedly operating a law firm without a licence from the Legal Practice Council (LPC).

According to a report in The Herald, the Hawks confirmed it was investigating a case of contravention of the Legal Practice Act after it was reported to them that attorney DuWayne Stoltz was practising under Nolands Law, which is not registered with the council.

‘The docket is still under investigation and it will be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions for a decision,’ Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Bonnie Nxumalo said.

Stoltz’s run-in with the law comes after he served a colleague from another firm with a substantial costs order.

Rihanda Strydom, the attorney he served with the punitive order, then lodged a complaint with the council against him and his firm, which was registered as a private company, a closed enterprise that is trading for profit, separately and distinctly from its shareholders.

Strydom said the moment the costs order was issued, she decided to do a background check on Stoltz and his firm.

‘Upon inquiry to the LPC, we were advised that they were not registered with the LPC as a registered law firm and/or legal practice as in accordance with the Legal Practice Act,’ she said.

Full report in The Herald