Job Knoester finds it unforgivable if Peter R. de Vries and his son Royce de Vries actually chose to cover up a misconduct by Khalid Kasem.
Khalid Kasem has immediately stopped working as a TV star now that the AD has audio recordings in which he – in the capacity of a lawyer – admits to having bribed an official. His then colleagues Peter R. de Vries and Royce de Vries were shocked by the tapes, but decided to cover it up, with all the associated risks.
Very wrong
Although Khalid clearly confesses on those tapes, he now denies it again in the media. But that doesn’t exactly make the situation any better, according to Today Inside lawyer Job Knoester. “Khalid’s reaction is very worrying,” he says The Orange Winter.
What then? “He now says, according to the AD: ‘Listen, I didn’t bribe, but I did put the 8,000 in my pocket because I still had an outstanding account.’ That alone is impossible for a lawyer. That is really very wrong from a disciplinary point of view.”
No cash
The main rule is that as a lawyer you do not accept cash, according to Job. “That has to be done by cash, because you don’t want to run the risk of stealing or worse: money laundering. That is also a question that arises here.”
And if it is indeed bribery, as Khalid says on those tapes? “If there is any question of bribery, then deletion seems obvious. But when it comes to the story he is now telling again, you may also wonder how you can still be a lawyer. That is what the disciplinary law will be about.”
Pedestal
Peter R. de Vries and Royce de Vries are also a bit finished now, Job thinks. After all, they have knowingly pushed this under the carpet so as not to harm their joint legal practice. Now Royce runs that practice with someone else. “Integrity is really paramount for a lawyer. You can lose that once and then never again.”
Job continues: “If the AD story is true and if Peter and Royce swept this under the rug, they will also fall from their pedestal.”
Implications?
Will this affect Royce? “For Royce anyway. Disciplinary action can always be taken against this. If there is really a suspicion of bribery, then he even has a criminal problem.”
Presenter Manuel Venderbos fears for Royce’s image. “One thing is that of course the names of Peter R. de Vries and Royce de Vries have now also been thrown out,” he says in Show news.
And GeenStijl celebrity Bart Nijman: “And Royce had to work so hard to get his father declared a saint…”
Serious accusation
Dennis Wolters, chairman of the Dutch Association of Criminal Lawyers, is in shock. “This is an extremely serious allegation that must be thoroughly investigated. If it is true, you are dealing with a criminal offense, also committed by a lawyer. That is also about confidence in the legal profession.”
Khalid has now resigned as a TV star. The big question is: is Royce’s position as a lawyer still tenable?