Illustrative image: (Photos: iStock | ipc.org.za) 
Three directors of the well-known Gqeberha law firm Greyvenstein Inc - Liesel Greyvenstein, Alan Els and Rohan Greyvenstein - have lost their bid to have set aside an investigative report relating to the alleged irregular procurement of conveyancing work, and marketing practices by the firm and its relationship with estate agencies.
The court was also asked to review the Legal Practice Council’s (LPC’s) subsequent ratification of the report. But this too was dismissed.
Liesel Greyvenstein said on Wednesday that the application against the LPC relates to a matter that has been running since 2014.
“The judge ruled that our application was premature in that what we raised in the application could be raised in due course. We are waiting on our counsel to consider the ruling whereafter we will consider our options,” she added.
According to the judgment, the LPC received complaints from several firms of attorneys about practices at Greyvenstein Inc. An investigating committee was appointed on 9 April 2020 to investigate the procurement of conveyancing work and marketing practices at the firm from 1 March 2016 to date.
The complaints mostly questioned the relationship between Greyvenstein Inc and estate agents in the metro.
But before then, the LPC’s predecessor, the Cape Law Society, had also received complaints similar in nature. In April 2016 the Cape Law Society, as it then was, started its own investigation.
Greyvenstein Inc also appointed its own investigators. This investigation found that the marketing and sales by the law firm were “sound”, the judgment continued.
PwC was appointed to boost the LPC’s investigation and produced a report that Judge Bantubonke Tokota described as “not favourable”, and revealed certain irregularities committed by Greyvenstein Inc.
This report, coupled with another from the Property Law Committee, then triggered a decision by the LPC to have all the current directors of Greyvenstein Inc struck off the roll of attorneys.
The council authorised the launch of the application on 30 July 2018. The decision was referred to its Disciplinary Oversight Committee for ratification. On 18 May 2019, the decision was ratified.
On 27 June 2019, the two Greyvensteins and Els launched an urgent application in the Western Cape Division of the High Court to interdict proceedings before a disciplinary process at the LPC was finalised.
But on 6 July 2019, the council rescinded its resolution to have the two Greyvensteins and Els struck off the roll and decided instead that the matter be referred to an investigating committee.
On 20 September 2019, the Eastern Cape Provincial Council established a committee to investigate the alleged irregular procurement of conveyancing work and marketing strategies of the firm.
On 6 June 2022, the chairperson of the investigating committee presented a report to the council for consideration. The committee incorporated the findings of the PwC report, namely that Greyvensteins spent about 10% of its budget on advertising and marketing, which equates to R7-million per year.
The firm advertised with estate agents to reach its target market and, while their advertising contracts show that they advertise with estate agents, they “do not recoup any such costs from the estate agents”.
This led to a finding by the committee that Greyvenstein Inc had brought the legal profession into disrepute by buying work and touting.
On 6 July 2022, the council ratified the decision of the committee and authorised a referral to a disciplinary committee for adjudication. This was then presented to Greyvenstein Inc in October 2022.
Judge Tokota found that the report and the decision to ratify the report could not be reviewed under either the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act or under the principle of legality.
The directors of Greyvenstein Inc have questioned the objectivity of the investigation, saying that attorneys involved from the LPC practised at firms that were in direct competition with them. For this reason, they did not cooperate with investigators. DM