A 99-year old widow has been forced to launch expensive court proceedings against suspended Durban attorney Shahir Ramdass in an attempt to get back almost R640 000 – the proceeds of the sale of her home and her only asset – that he allegedly misappropriated, reports TimesLIVE.

The Legal Practice Council (LPC) in KZN obtained a court order on 9 September last year suspending Ramdass from practising after complaints that he ‘rolled’ trust fund money in an unrelated property transaction, failed to wind up a deceased estate after seven years, and ‘transferred’, without authority, R5m from another deceased estate.

Since then dozens of former clients have laid complaints with the LPC and have attempted to lodge claims against the Legal Practice Council Fidelity Fund to recover money they say is missing.

But because the fund is a fund of ‘last resort’, they first have to exhaust ‘all available remedies’ against Ramdass, his firm or his estate, including launching possible sequestration proceedings.

Narainamma Naidoo’s family have already incurred costs of more than R15 000 hiring lawyers to launch an application in the KZN High Court (Durban), set down to be heard in June, in an attempt to get a judgment against him. 

Ramdass initially claimed his accounts had been ‘frozen by the LPC' and that is why he could not pay Naidoo the money deposited in his trust account as the proceeds due to her from the sale of her Montclair home.

But the funds were deposited into his trust account on 3 September 2024.

In correspondence with Naidoo, the LPC confirmed it had ‘taken over the accounts’ on 9 September that year. In an e-mail TimesLIVE says it has seen, the LPC confirms on that date ‘only R12 905.94’ was in the account.

At this stage, it is not clear whether this was the total amount of funds left in the entire trust account of the once highly successful conveyancing firm – which would likely have up to R50m in its trust ‘pot’ at any given time – or whether this was what was left in credit to Naidoo after the balance of the funds were diverted elsewhere. 

Pearl Mfusi, KZN LPC director, confirmed Ramdass remained suspended from practice.

‘A number of complaints have been formally launched and our team continues to investigate all matters. The LPC will continue to do all that it can to assist all complainants and to bring all matters to finality as soon as possible,’ she said.

Full TimesLIVE report