The reinstatement of one of Seth Nthai, SA’s most controversial state counsels to the roll of advocates, has exposed divisions in the legal fraternity.
Seth Nthai was readmitted to the roll of advocates late in May after he approached the high court in Polokwane with the backing of the Polokwane Bar and among others, eminent human rights’ lawyer George Bizos.
The court said the judgment, which was penned by among others, Limpopo judge president Ephraim Makgoba, was about a second chance for Nthai.
His application was opposed by the Johannesburg Society of Advocates, the Pretoria Society of Advocates and the newly formed SA Legal Practice Council, as the associations believed he was still not fit and proper to be readmitted to the profession.
Nthai resigned as a member of the Johannesburg and Pretoria Bars when his unethical conduct — for which he has never been criminally charged — came to the fore at the height of his career.