Cynthia Ritchie's former lawyer says US blogger changes stance everyday

LONDON/ISLAMABAD: US blogger Cynthia D Ritchie's former lawyer, Advocate Nasir Azeem Khan, has denied allegations by his former client of misrepresentation in the court, terming them "baseless" and "unfounded".

Cynthia Ritchie has blamed her lawyer for poor representation and making erroneous arguments in a case against the Pakistan Peoples Party. She disengaged with him after he demanded Rs2 million to contest her cases.

Speaking to Geo News morning show Geo Pakistan earlier today, Advocate Nasir Khan clarified his position, saying the money to be charged for the cases had been agreed to a great extent beforehand with his client. The quoted price included the firm's legal charges as well as court fees for nine applications, he added.

"We first sent two legal notices on behalf of our client. After that, we had to file two defamation and damages suits, one worth Rs60 billion and another worth Rs120 million," Khan said.

"Once accepted, we had to file both cases in the court, which incurs more fees. I was also representing in her FIRs and as a defence counsel for cases against her. In total there were nine cases for which I quoted this fee," he added.

The lawyer said the third party Ritchie mentioned was their mutual friend and not a government official or related to any governmental institution. He said he made all the arguments based on his former client's advice but he could not be held responsible for misrepresentation if his client changed her mind about the arguments to be presented in the court.

"I cannot reveal the information provided by my client but I can say that it is impossible for any lawyer to represent their client who changes their legal stance every day.

"As lawyers, it is our job to explain the applications of the law to our clients but sadly, in this case, the client kept on changing their mind. My legal fraternity stands with me in this, I am a professional lawyer. This mudslinging on my name is very unfortunate."

The US blogger had earlier made headlines after she accused former interior minister and PPP leader Rehman Malik of rape and former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gillani of manhandling her.

She accused the advocate of asking her to help arrange a visa as, according to her, he believed he was on some hit list for taking on her case. She said she had become concerned for his lawyer’s safety and suggested contacting authorities but claimed that Khan stopped her from doing so and asked for extra cash.

She mentioned that she had not signed any contract with Khan and that his senior had advised him not to contact her again.

"As with media, I record all my conversations with lawyers. If Mr Nisar fails to recall anything I am able — through his seniors — provide a copy of the audio as a reminder," she said.

Ritchie had said earlier she "just came to know" that Khan had misrepresented her in the court. "I NEVER said my tweets were fake. We were supposed to file [a] criminal report today against Rehman Malik," she wrote on Twitter on Monday.

"Now, suddenly Mr. Khan is demanding 20 lakh rupees [Rs2 million] from me - even though this matter was managed by a 3rd party," she had added.

Ritchie, on the other hand, has now hired lawyers Imran Feroze Malik and Ibrahim Arshad Khan to represent her in legal proceedings.