John Hlophe cries discrimination after State stops paying his legal fees

Western Cape High Court Judge President John Hlophe said the State was discriminating against him because it had stopped paying his legal fees for challenges against his pending impeachment.

In a letter to Parliament’s justice committee, Hlophe also said that with the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) unable to unanimously agree to his impeachment in 2021, its gross misconduct finding can’t be considered a judicial fact.

However, the committee said with Hlophe’s appeal having failed to get off the ground, there’s no legal impediment to it continuing with the impeachment process against him.

Hlophe said the State had been paying his legal fees since 2009, but this stopped without explanation in 2021.

His lawyer, Barnabas Xulu, said this means that Hlophe’s legal representatives had not been paid since August of that year, but that the State continued to fund other parties involved in the litigation.

He said it remained a mystery to him why the State had also not funded the record which needed to be placed before the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA).

Hlophe is currently challenging the non-payment of his legal fees in the North Gauteng High Court and says he’s not responsible for the delays.

He has further informed the committee that the State Attorney’s office now requires him to make a formal application for funding.

Hlophe wants Parliament to conduct its own inquiry into his misconduct charge dating back to 2008, saying it would be in the public interest, and he would fully participate.

But Parliament’s legal advisor, Barbara Loots, said that was not the committee’s job.

“There’s no legal impediment for the committee to proceed. It is not for Parliament to run an inquiry into the process of the JSC, as Judge President Hlophe’s letter appears to request.”

Hlophe has until 15 November to provide the committee with reasons as to why he should not be impeached.

-EWN

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