The legal fraternity will consider legal action if “chaotic” conditions at the office of the master of the high court in Pretoria are not resolved.
There have been complaints for some time about service from the office, but, according to lawyers and members of the public, service has virtually come to a standstill since the office moved to the SALU Building in Schoeman Street in October last year.
The chief master, according to the official website, promised that services would resume on December 1, but two and a half months later only a few telephone lines have been connected, computers have not been connected and many of the staff are still awaiting furniture.
An attorney, who does not want to be identified, said it was hopeless to try to find any documents or get assistance from the master’s office as it was “in disarray”. “The result is that the public is suffering, as they have to wait in vain for estates to be wound up.”
He said since the Law Society of the Northern Provinces issued a statement on the prevailing conditions at the master’s office, a number of disgruntled attorneys had demanded that the high court be called on to try to resolve the problems and direct the way forward.
In its statement, the law society said it was deeply concerned about the conditions at the master’s office.
Law society president Jan van Rensburg said the problems experienced had a direct impact on the functioning of the courts, deeds office as well as the public.
“Access to files kept by the master has been limited and technically impossible since the end of October last year. The master has not been able to provide an indication of when the problems will be rectified and when the office will be fully functional,” he said.
A committee from the Law Society met the master and deputy masters. “At this meeting the master committed to issuing a media statement informing the public by Friday (February 7) of the situation at the Master’s Office as well as guidelines on the new system for legal practitioners. To date the Law Society of the Northern Provinces has not received either of these documents.”
Van Rensburg said that apart from the telephones and computers not working, not all the files had been unpacked and there was only one counter available to assist the public and legal practitioners.
As the master’s office works mainly with estates, it means that people have to wait for months for estates to be concluded. It has also had a snowball effect on other offices such as the deeds office, as transfers of property (either left in an estate as an inheritance or a property to be sold from an estate) cannot be transferred.
Anton Theron, an estates committee member of the Gauteng Law Council, said it was extremely difficult to obtain documents relating to estates from this office which sometimes took months.
“It is definitely a crisis for both the public and the legal profession. We, as the lawyers, are held accountable by the public for this delay, but there is nothing we can do, as we cannot obtain the documents.
“Neither us – the legal profession – nor the public know what’s going on.”
The master also controls the guardian fund, money left to minors in estates. An attorney said if they applied for funds from these accounts, it could take months before they received the money often earmarked as maintenance money or for a child’s education.
A clerk who visits the master’s office every day said it was “a nightmare”. He blamed the top structure for not guiding employees. “The workers on the ground simply take their time in ordering files.”
Tlali Tlali, spokesman for the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, said that while the office was not working as well as it should, to suggest that the office was in a state of disarray was an exaggeration.
The move of the master’s office had been communicated to all parties involved, including the public, and a meeting was held with the law society earlier this month to share information and address concerns. He said it was indicated at that meeting that all sections were fully operational and the department was working on clearing the backlog caused by the relocation. This was expected to be completed within two months.
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