Stephen McNamara trial: Jury told the Adelaide lawyer defrauded two deceased estates of $850,000 through sham investments
AN ADELAIDE lawyer allegedly defrauded two deceased estates of $850,000 through “sham investments” before fabricating evidence in the Supreme Court to conceal his theft, a court has heard.
ADELAIDE lawyer Stephen McNamara allegedly defrauded two deceased estates of $850,000 through “sham investments” before fabricating evidence in the Supreme Court to conceal his theft, a court has heard.
On Tuesday, the prosecution opened its case against McNamara, who is facing a two-week trial before a District Court jury for 16 counts of theft and a further 17 counts of falsifying evidence.
His co-accused, Phillip John Pitman, has denied a single count of falsifying evidence.
Opening his case, prosecutor James Slocombe said McNamara was the managing partner at firm Commercial and General Law when he was entrusted to oversee the execution of two deceased estates — valued at $385,000 and $465,000 — between 2011 and 2015.
He said he moved the money from the firm’s trust account into other trust accounts, including the Legal Management Consultation Services and Andamooka Opal Stone trusts, and labelled the transactions as “investment”.
“He didn’t simply go to a bank and pull it out and transfer it straight into his own account,” Mr Slocombe told the jury.
“What he did was use a more sophisticated and dishonest system involving sham investments and companies to make it look like the money was being carefully invested for the benefit of the estates.
“While the reality, on the prosecution case, all the accused was really doing is not investing the money — it was all a sham.
“He was moving the money out of the sham investment account into a number of other bank accounts which was ultimately used to pay for personal expenses.”
Mr Slocombe told the court that when it came time to pay out the estates to the beneficiaries, McNamara would give “excuse after excuse” and delay the finalisations.
“The money wasn’t there — he had used it for his own purposes,” he said.
He said he only paid out the first estate once the money from the second estate had been placed into his firm’s trust account.
The court was told a beneficiary of the second estate became frustrated with delays in the estate being paid and made a complaint against McNamara to the Law Society of SA.
Mr Slocombe said that complaint sparked an investigation into McNamara’s management of the deceased estates.
He said the society appointed a manager to his practice, which prompted McNamara to launch Supreme Court action in a bid to stop that from taking place.
The jury was told McNamara and Pitt then allegedly falsified certificates of investments and attached them to affidavits which were filed as part of the Supreme Court action.
Mr Slocombe said the documents were made to make it look like the investments were legitimate.
“The document wasn’t created until January 2015, which was at the time the Law Society proceedings were on foot,” he said.
Craig Caldicott, for McNamara, told the jury that an estate placed in trust does not accrue any interest and if it sits in a trust account for a long time, lawyers have an obligation to invest it.
“The issue at heart is did Mr McNamara take the funds for his own personal use,” he said.
The trial continues.
