By Cam Lucadou-Wells
A fake lawyer has apparently been emailing requests on behalf of at least two defendants at Dandenong Magistrates’ Court, a magistrate has noted.
During a hearing on 8 May, Jack Vandersteen asked if a defendant knew a purported lawyer ‘Sarah O’Hara’ who had requested an adjournment of the defendant’s case on 14 October.
The request – with the accused’s name and case number – had been emailed to the court about 4am on the day of the October hearing.
The language and layout was convincing enough to cause the Dandenong court’s registrar to adjourn the matter as requested, Mr Vandersteen said.
It was the second request from Ms O’Hara made on behalf of another accused that had been uncovered in the past week, he said.
He said the emails ought to be referred to the Victorian Legal Services Commissioner.
“The concern of the court is obvious,” he said.
“At the lowest, it’s a mistake. At the highest, it’s an attempt to pervert justice.”
The alleged client, a 26-year-old Cranbourne woman, told the court from the public gallery that she didn’t know who Ms O’Hara was.
Her real lawyer on 8 May told the court: “She has never seen any other lawyer outside of Victoria Legal Aid.”
Mr Vandersteen said to the accused: “I’m not suggesting at all that you have anything to do with it.
“If we’re having court processes thwarted by someone, we have to know.”
The accused had pleaded guilty to multiple counts of driving unlicensed and driving an unregistered vehicle, as well as possession of the drug ice, drug-driving and handling $700 of stolen cosmetics and clothes.
She was put on a 12-month supervised community corrections order with 75 hours of unpaid work and drug testing and treatment.
