AAP General News (Australia)
04-08-2004
NSW: Lawyers, accountants escape questions over One.Tel
SYDNEY, April 8 AAP - Lawyers for Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd and accountants who
advised One.Tel have escaped questioning by the special purpose liquidator investigating
the telco's demise.
NSW Supreme Court Justice William Windeyer today ruled that partners in the law firm
Minter Ellison, lawyers from Freehills and accountants from Ernst and Young will not have
to be examined by the telco's special purpose liquidator Paul Weston.
"The solicitors were not solicitors for One.Tel but advisers to PBL," Justice Windeyer said.
He said the examinations proposed by the special purpose liquidator did not fall within
the scope of his appointment.
Mr Weston was appointed late last year to investigate the cancellation of a $132 million
rights issue shortly before the May 2001 collapse of One.Tel.
PBL and News Ltd were major shareholders in One.Tel and agreed to underwrite the issue.
Justice Windeyer said it was agreed that the lawyers and accountants were each only
at some of the meetings when the rights issue was discussed.
Earlier this week James Packer and Lachlan Murdoch made an out-of-court settlement
with Mr Weston on the same matter.
They agreed to extend the period in which Mr Weston can make claims of deceptive and
misleading conduct under the Fair Trading Act in return for delaying their examinations
until the conclusion of the Australian Securities and Investment Commission hearing.
The ASIC hearing is due to start in July.
The agreement also included five News executives and 10 executives from PBL and associated
company Consolidated Press Holdings.
The lawyers and accountants included in today's judgment did not agree to extend the
time period in which the special liquidator could make such a claim.
AAP klw/nf/cmc/br
KEYWORD: ONETEL
2004 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.
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