Debarred lawyer lists his demands

PRETORIA: While criminal charges are being investigated against a former Klerksdorp advocate relating to the alleged forgery of signatures on court documents, the man was back in court yesterday with a list of demands.

Paul Nieuwoudt was struck from the roll of advocates last November and is being investigated for forging signatures of a mother and a judge in a case, giving him the custody of a minor.

Two judges from the High Court in Pretoria not only barred Nieuwoudt from practising, but also ordered that the Director of Public Prosecutions urgently investigate his conduct, with a view to instituting criminal charges.

Advocate Pat Ellis of the Bar Council’s ethics committee confirmed that criminal charges had been formulated and are being investigated.

Nieuwoudt has denied any wrongdoing and since having his name struck from the roll, has persisted in claiming that he was innocent.

One of the complaints was from the mother of a 10-yearold boy. She and a social worker claimed their signatures were forged on documents in which she “agreed” to give Nieuwoudt full authority over the fate of her son.

In terms of the “agreement”, she undertook not to contact her son for 20 years.

Both the mother and the social worker said they would never sign such an agreement.

When the “court order” was served on the astonished mother, she turned to the court with the help of the Centre for Child Law.

The judge denied it was his signature and a handwriting expert confirmed that several of the signatures complained of were in fact fraudulent.

Nieuwoudt’s demands yesterday included that he wanted a full investigation into the circumstances of the child’s present conditions, which should include “his possible abuse”.

He also wanted all judgments delivered against him to be declared null and void.

The application was struck from the roll.