By Suleman Chitera
The Office of the Attorney General has launched a decisive legal offensive, asking the High Court of Malawi to bar private practice lawyer Dr Kalekeni Kaphale from representing TotalEnergies in a staggering K824 billion (about $480 million) breach of contract case.
At the heart of the explosive application is a blunt accusation: conflict of interest.
The case pits Prima Fuels Ltd and the Malawi Government against TotalEnergies over alleged unpaid fuel rebates. Government argues that the energy giant was contractually bound under a 2001 agreement to remit rebate payments — but allegedly stopped honouring that obligation in 2006.
Now, the Attorney General, Frank Mbeta, says Kaphale should never have stepped into the ring on the other side.
“PRIVY TO EVIDENTIAL INFORMATION”
In a sworn statement seen by this publication, Mbeta reveals that in 2020 — when Kaphale himself was serving as Attorney General — his office formally communicated with lawyers for Prima Fuels regarding the very same dispute.
That correspondence, according to the AG, contained information of evidential importance.
“It is obvious, therefore, that Dr Kalekeni Kaphale SC was privy to information of evidential importance in respect of this matter at the time he was the Attorney General of the Republic of Malawi,” the statement reads.
The AG argues that this prior access to sensitive legal strategy and evidence fatally taints Kaphale’s current role defending TotalEnergies.
ETHICS UNDER FIRE
The application cites Chapter 7(3) of the Malawi Law Society Code of Ethics — a provision that prohibits a lawyer who once acted for one party from later acting for another party in relation to the same claim.
In this instance, the matter is not merely similar — it is identical: Cause Number 259 of 2019.
The AG’s position is uncompromising. A lawyer who once stood at the helm of the State’s legal machinery cannot now pivot and defend a corporate entity in the same high-stakes litigation, armed with inside knowledge obtained while in public office.
HIGH-STAKES SHOWDOWN
With K824 billion on the line, this is not a routine procedural skirmish. It is a battle that cuts to the core of legal ethics, public trust, and corporate accountability.
If the court sides with the Attorney General, it will not only sideline one of the country’s most prominent legal figures from the case — it will also send a powerful message about the boundaries between public office and private gain.
All eyes are now on the High Court as it determines whether Kaphale remains in the TotalEnergies defence team — or is forced out on ethical grounds.
