Despite fleeing to Australia, seemingly to elude prosecution on various charges including fraud and money laundering, the suspended father and son Gauteng personal injury attorneys Ronald and Darren Bobroff continue to do business in South Africa.
Moneyweb has uncovered that the website of their law firm remains active and that the Bobroffs are still taking on new clients. Both father and son were suspended from the Roll of Attorneys in April this year and their law firm Ronald Bobroff & Partners (RBP) was put under curatorship. Earlier this year the Bobroffs left for Australia before the Hawks could arrest them on multiple charges of fraud, money laundering, tax evasion and theft from their road accident and personal injury clients.
It is clear that the Bobroffs are not on holiday. The RBP website remains active and does not mention a word about the fact that the firm is under the curatorship of Johan van Staden, an official of the Law Society of the Northern Provinces (LSNP).
On the Contact Us page of the website, the mobile number of Ronald’s daughter Cindi Jaches appears. This journalist contacted Jaches and she identified herself as Ronald’s daughter and asked me to send an email to cindibobroff@gmail.com. A special email address was created and a fictitious email was sent to Jaches from ‘Amanda Lottering’ describing a horrific case of medical negligence.
Ronald promptly replied from his Gmail account (ronaldbobroff@gmail.com) and said that Lottering was wise to take legal action and that there seemed to be merit in her case.
Bobroff also stated that Graeme Krawitz would contact her. Graeme Krawitz is an attorney at Michael Krawitz & Co in Dunkeld, a suburb in Johannesburg.
In a second email exchange the following day, fees were discussed. Lottering offered to pay a fixed monthly amount of R2 000, but Bobroff responded: “Mr Krawitz will act on a no win -no fee basis in terms of the Contingency fees act This limits the attorneys fee to not more than 25 percent of the damages recovered So you need have no concern about having to pay anything up front [sic].”
Thinus Grobler, Director of the LSNP, told Moneyweb: “The Law Society has, with concern, noted the facts relating to the continued use of the Ronald Bobroff & Partners website by suspended attorneys Ronald and Darren Bobroff after their practice was placed under curatorship when they were suspended. The Curator has already requested the Bobroffs to desist from using the website and this issue will certainly be followed up by the Law Society in liaison with the Curator.
“The referral of work to attorney Krawitz is unacceptable and his involvement on the basis referred to by Moneyweb will also be investigated with the assistance of the Curator.”
Krawitz told Moneyweb that he was not fronting for the Bobroffs, saying: “Any suggestion that I am is devoid of any truth whatsoever.” He added that he did not intend to comment on any aspect of the draft story sent to him “which refer to Ronald and Darren Bobroff”.
The high court in Pretoria has set December 6 2016 as the date on which the Bobroffs stand to be struck from the Roll of Attorneys.
The following parties failed to respond to Moneyweb’s request for comment: Ronald Bobroff, Darren Bobroff and Cindi Jaches.
Read the trail of emails here.
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