Court awards Chiman Patel nearly R1m after the retired judge sued the state
A summons was served on the retired KZN judge president nearly a year after a case was registered against him, but the case was withdrawn before the trial began
Retired KwaZulu-Natal Judge President Chiman Patel has been awarded R900‚000 in damages after he successfully sued the state for malicious prosecution.Lindiwe Nxele‚ a clerk in the High Court in Durban‚ accused Patel of calling her "nonsense‚ trash‚ rubbish" and a "useless person" in 2013.Patel’s reprimand had followed a delay in the delivery of office stationary‚ and in response Nxele had gone to the police to open a case.A summons was served on Patel on Diwali nearly a year after the case was registered and KwaZulu-Natal director of public prosecutions Moipone Noko mysteriously withdrew the criminal case before the trial was to commence in 2014.Patel then instituted civil proceedings‚ claiming R3m‚ and culminating in Wednesday’s ruling.High Court in Johannesburg Judge Aubrey Ledwaba‚ who heard the matter in the High Court in Durban‚ delivered judgment in Patel’s favour on Wednesday.In doing so‚ Ledwaba fired off a scathing rebuke of Noko‚ saying that her decision to push ahead wit...
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