‘THEE Anton Katz’: Who is Dr Nandipha’s new hotshot lawyer?

Dr Nandipha Magudumana’s legal team has confirmed it will be appealing the Free State High Court ruling which, on Monday 5 June, dismissed her urgent application to have her Tanzanian arrest and deportation to South Africa declared unlawful.

“The issue at hand now lies on the perceived consent, we are of the view that that conclusion is appealable and there are legal grounds to launch an appeal against the decision of the Free State High Court,” Adv Machini Motloung was quoted as saying by Jacaranda FM.

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The disgraced celebrity doctor was arrested in April this year in Tanzania alongside her partner, the convicted murderer and so-called Facebook rapist Thabo Bester.

Magudumana is accused of helping Bester escape from Bloemfontein’s Mangaung Correctional Centre on 3 May last year. 

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Anton Katz: Dr Nandipha brings in big guns

It is clear that Magudumana, who is widely known as Dr Nandipha, is sparing no costs in her court bid to secure her freedom.

Last week, she also roped in leading international advocate Anton Katz SC to bolster her already formidable legal team of Motloung and Adv Frans Dlamini.

The 62-year-old Katz’s appearance in court on 1 June caused quite the stir on social media with many netizens speculating about the financial repercussions of the renowned legal eagle’s fee.

Parody Twitter account, Man’s NOT Barry Roux, immediately headed to the social network to comment on Magudumana’s choice of Katz.

“Dr Nandipha decided to bring Anton Katz SC, a top international law advocate. Nandi is not taking chances.”

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Who is Adv Anton Katz?

The Cape Town advocate graduated with BSc (mathematics) and LLB degrees from the University of Cape Town and with an LLM (international law) from Columbia School of Law, in New York, United States.

Katz is considered the gold standard in South Africa when it comes to international criminal law, extradition and refugee matters. 

Katz is a member of the New York Bar and has reportedly appeared at some of the highest courts in Namibia, Swaziland, Botswana and South Africa. 

He authored the chapter on refugee law in John Dugard’s International Law textbook.

High-profile cases

• One of his most recent high-profile cases, was that of the extradition of the Gupta brothers Rajesh and Atul after their arrest in Dubai in 2022.

According to Sunday Times, Katz offered his expertise to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the Justice Department following Justice Minister Ronald Lamola’s plea for legal minds to provide pro bono services in corruption-related matters.

• He acted on behalf of  controversial French arms company Thales in the case between former president Jacob Zuma, Schabir Shaik and Thales SA.
• Katz also represented Sekunjalo Investment Holdings in their fight against the Public Investment Corporation.

Who is Anton Katz married to?

The lawyer is married to journalist and eNCA news anchor Annika Larsen. Former Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter made several bombshell allegations against the ailing parastatal on My Guest Tonight with Annika Larsen.

The couple have two sons, Joseph and Milo.

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