Lawyers for Jacob Zuma will this week launch a court application to set aside last month’s search and seizure operations by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) on properties linked to the former deputy president.

Michael Hulley, Zuma’s lawyer, said he would also demand the return of all documents and other evidence seized in the raids.

This and other recent court challenges to the raids by the NPA have delayed the investigation against Zuma. It is understood that the prosecution will ask for a postponement when Zuma appears in court next month amid indications that Zuma’s trial is unlikely to start until March.

The NPA’s initial estimate was that Zuma would be presented with a complete charge sheet when he appears in court on October 11.

Zuma’s application will be launched in the Durban High Court tomorrow.

“We will argue for the return of all papers and equipment taken from Jacob Zuma’s Nkandla home in KwaZulu-Natal, my office in Durban and his home in Forest Town as well as the Killarney flat, both in Johannesburg,” Hulley said.

The court application follows the NPA’s refusal to comply with Hulley’s demand that they return all seized evidence. Hulley made the demand after Johannesburg High Court Judge Ismail Hussain ordered that the prosecutors return all documents and computer equipment taken from Julekha Mohamed, another of Zuma’s lawyers. Judge Hussain found that the Scorpions had presented “misleading and incomplete” evidence in their application for a warrant to search Mohamed’s premises.

Hulley said the NPA’S appeal against Hussain’s judgment would not stop his client asking for the return of all seized evidence.

But Robin Palmer of the University of KwaZulu-Natal law school said it was unlikely the application would succeed as Hussain’s judgment related to evidence seized only from Mohamed.

“It would be interesting to see on what basis they seek the return of documents seized from Hulley’s office, or Zuma himself.”

He said the National Prosecuting Authority Act gave the Scorpions “fairly wide powers” to conduct raids for evidence, even against attorneys acting for the accused.

Even if the Scorpions returned the documents seized from Mohamed, they could still apply for a fresh warrant by amending their original affidavits, he said. Returned evidence could therefore still be presented in court if it were obtained by “more appropriate” means, said Palmer.

Hulley said he would “vigorously oppose” any further adjournment for more investigations.

With acknowledgements to Karima Brown, Vukani Mde and the Business Day.