Online Reporter
Fidelis Munyoro
Chief Court Reporter
MASHONALAND West Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Marian Chombo is locked in a legal battle to slash the hefty fees charged by a Harare law firm that represented her during her divorce proceedings.
The Supreme Court will hear her appeal today, with a panel of three judges — Justices Antonia Guvava, Chinembiri Bhunu and Hlekani Mwayera — set to deliberate on the matter.
Minister Chombo is challenging Nyambirai and Mtetwa Law Firm’s claim, seeking relief from her financial obligations.
In a contentious dispute dating back to 2011, Minister Chombo was billed US$100 000 by the law firm that handled her divorce from former Cabinet minister Ignatius Chombo.
She argued that the fee was unreasonably high and proposed a reduced settlement of US$50 000.
The minister even claimed she attempted to offset the debt by offering property stands from her divorce settlement.
However, when the law firm sought to verify these assets, it uncovered discrepancies—none of the stand numbers matched existing properties.
The High Court, presided over by Justice Joel Mambara, recently ruled against Minister Chombo, ordering her to pay the full amount.
The court dismissed her defence, labelling it inconsistent and without merit.
Justice Mambara pointed out that Minister Chombo had previously acknowledged the debt and promised to settle it when financially able.
In his judgment, the court emphasised that the acknowledgement of debt remains binding and found her later defences insubstantial.
The ruling stipulated that Minister Chombo must pay US$100 000 or its equivalent in local currency at the prevailing exchange rate, along with interest and legal costs.
Minister Chombo originally engaged the law firm in June 2011 to take over her divorce case already pending before the High Court.
The firm, led by Ms Beatrice Mtetwa, filed a notice of agency and undertook significant legal work on her behalf. This included attending pre-trial conferences, filing interlocutory applications, and successfully overturning a court order that had struck out her plea and dismissed her counterclaim.
The firm also facilitated negotiations that led to a partial settlement of the divorce’s property issues, culminating in a consent order in August 2012.
Despite these efforts, unresolved matters proceeded to trial, and the law firm continued to represent them.
In September 2014, Minister Chombo signed an acknowledgement of debt, agreeing to pay US$100 000 in two instalments.
She was to pay the first half by the end of September and the remainder by mid-December of that year.
Yet, she failed to meet the agreed terms, prompting the law firm to issue a summons in January 2024 to recover the outstanding amount.
