Viljoen says he still considers himself an attorney, although the LPC says he cannot practice as one even if two judges said he is honest and good-looking.
After the LPC said last week that Peet Viljoen of Tammy Taylor fame is still disbarred and therefore not allowed to offer legal services in South Africa, Viljoen tried to explain why he is still disbarred, but the LPC stands by its statement and adds that he is not the best attorney to come out of Pretoria.
After they left the country earlier this year, Viljoen started a website where he offered a legal consultation for R5 000 per hour. He called himself a legal broker. However, the Legal Practice Council (LPC), when asked to comment, confirmed that he is not allowed to practice as a lawyer.
Viljoen’s wife, Melany, who now has a podcast where she interviews her husband every day, then asked him about the LPC and his disbarment.
According to Viljoen, there are two separate “clubs”, the Law Society and the LPC, but the Law Society closed down, which was the club he belonged to and the one that disbarred him. Viljoen alleges that he “gave the Law Society three hidings in court and obtained three cost orders, but the Law Society only paid one before it closed down.
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Viljoen says Law Society still owes him about R18 million
He says he is still owed about R18 million in today’s money. Viljoen also alleges that he was disbarred without any chance to tell his side of the story. “Fifteen years later, two judges acquitted me. They said I am the most honest lawyer, that I should never have been charged, and that I am quite a good-looking lawyer as well.
Despite searches on legal websites, The Citizen was unable to find this case where the judges made such flattering remarks. The Citizen asked Viljoen to forward the judgment to us, but he did not respond.
Viljoen also states that the Law Society only succeeded in disbaring him at the third attempt, and that happened only due to the drama and news, and “the changing political climate where judges without law degrees were appointed”.
He says he appealed the decision to disbar him, but then the Law Society closed up shop rather than finish the fight. This leaves me in a vacuum because I could not reapply before the pending JPC case was handled, which happened last year when the case was withdrawn.
“But when I went to knock at the door, I found there is now an LPC in a different region. It was not the same people anymore. I could not sue the Law Society because it does not exist anymore.”
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I am not part of the LPC – Viljoen
He believes the LPC cannot do anything against him because they must “first find the Law Society that I won against”. Then, he says the LPC must first complete the appeal and put it before a judge, and only then can it be totally struck off the roll.
“I am not part of the LPC. Before we left South Africa, I applied to the LPC. They still did not oppose my application, and I have it on good authority from a big shot that he approved my application, but that same person told me that, due to political reasons, I am seen as persona non grata by the LPC’s new divisional head.
“I am still a lawyer. If there is a certificate from the LPC prohibiting me from practising law, I will adhere to that. There is no complaint against me, no investigation. The idiots who run the LPC now probably cannot read or write.”
He says he challenges the LPC to act and says his cell number is available on social media. “I know I am a lawyer with a court order saying that I am a very honest lawyer. No other lawyer has that.”
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What does the LPC say about these statements from Peet Viljoen?
We asked the LPC to comment, and Kabelo Letebele, senior manager for communication and engagements at the LPC, said the LPC wants to reiterate that Peet Viljoen is not a legal practitioner in South Africa.
“It is a matter of public record that he was struck from the court roll by the High Court in 2011. The consequence of this is absolute: he is legally barred from practising law, holding himself out as an attorney, or offering legal services for reward in the Republic. His claims in the video to be the “best attorney… out of Pretoria” are factually false.”
Letebele said anyone who has been struck from the roll but continues to offer legal services for a fee is acting unlawfully, and this constitutes a criminal offence under the Legal Practice Act.
He also warned that anyone using Viljoen’s services is not afforded any of the protections mandated by law. Specifically, they have no recourse to the Legal Practitioners’ Fidelity Fund, which protects client monies from theft, and he is not subject to the LPC’s Code of Conduct or regulatory oversight.
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LPC notes Peet Viljoen’s pattern of deflection
“The LPC takes any and all allegations of unauthorised practice with the utmost seriousness as part of its mandate to protect the public. Our standard procedure for such matters involves investigation and, where evidence warrants it, referral to the South African Police Service (Saps) for criminal investigation.”
He also explained that the process to strike a practitioner from the roll is not an administrative decision by the LPC (or its predecessors) but a judicial one, made by the High Court. The Law Society and/or LPC, as the guardian of professional standards, presents the evidence, but the final order is granted by an independent court after due process.
Letebele added that Viljoen’s attacks on the judiciary are baseless and appear to be a self-serving attempt to discredit the very institutions that have, through lawful processes, held him accountable for his conduct. “This context is important as it points to a pattern of deflection from numerous findings against him, including civil judgments for misrepresentation.”
This screenshot shows Viljoen’s name on the list of disbarred attorneys:
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Melany wants the same LPC to disbar her advocate
Meanwhile, although Viljoen does not seem to have much regard for the LPC, his website contains a post that Melany is now asking the High Court to order the LPC to disbar the advocate who represented her and her husband in various cases where women who bought licenses to open Tammy Taylor nail salons that never materialised, sued them to get their money back.
“They tried to silence her. Now she’s fighting back—bigger, stronger, and totally unstoppable,” Peet writes on his website. “When corrupt insiders, bureaucrats and their friends in the ‘elite legal club’ thought they could destroy Melany Viljoen’s reputation, they made one massive mistake. They underestimated her.
“This is the Notice of Motion that shakes the foundations of South Africa’s broken legal establishment. Filed in the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, this document represents not just a lawsuit, but a revolution against political bias, abuse of power and media manipulation. They called it “justice.” She calls it revenge by the book.
“As President Trump would say: They’re not after her because she did something wrong, they’re after her because she did something RIGHT.”
The Citizen requested a comment from the advocate involved, as well as from the Viljoens, but neither responded. When they do, their replies will be published.
