Pretoria - Ailing Springbok rugby legend Joost van der Westhuizen will know on Wednesday whether the R385 665 which he claimed his former lawyer owed him, will immediately be paid out to him or whether he will have to wait in line to claim the money from the lawyer’s estate.
Joost turned to the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, on Tuesday to obtain an order that the Attorney’s Fidelity Fund immediately pay the money over to him.
His former lawyer, Robert Klinkenberg, allegedly committed suicide in December this year. Joost said he had an arrangement with Klinkenberg that the attorney would hold his (Joost) funds in his trust account and from time to time make payments on Joost’s behalf.
He explained in court papers that due to his fatal illness – Motor Neuron Disease (MND) - there was no point in investing the money elsewhere. The idea was that the money should be available at short notice.
It meanwhile came to light after Klinkenberg’s death that there were shortfalls on his trust account. Joost suggested that the money he had invested with Klinkenberg was part of the shortfall and thus theft on the part of his former attorney.
He said he cannot wait in line to get his money, as it may be too late for him. According to him he meanwhile has bills to pay and medicine to buy.
But lawyers for the Fidelity Fund said there is no evidence that they money was stolen. They said it was rather a case if him investing the money with the lawyer.
Advocate Gary Oliver on Tuesday said; “Many people think we do not have a heart. But while we have all sympathy for him, we have to follow the law.”
Oliver said the law precluded the fund from paying the money to Joost and he had to institute his claim directly with Klinkenberg’s estate.
Acting Judge L Adams said he needed time to think about this and he will deliver his judgement on Wednesday.