Brisbane accountant Craig Morrissey has had a lousy year

ONE of the latest entrants in Brisbane’s explosion of laneway culture presents a formidable challenge for potential clients. How do you find it?

Illustration of Craig Morrissey by Tony Bela.

IT’S been a lousy year so far for Craig Morrissey, the Brisbane accountant and horse racing devotee.

One of his companies crashed, the tax man is still chasing him in court and his best pony broke a leg before going to the great paddock in the sky.

Initial estimates that his now-defunct firm Audit Now Qld Pty Ltd collapsed owing about $3 million were off the mark.

It turns out the company fell over owing $8.67 million to unsecured creditors, a new report from Worrells liquidator Raj Khatri claims.

He says there’s exactly zero chance that anyone will recover a penny.

A lethal combination of “adverse legal action, ill health, change in the market and regulatory action by the ATO and ASIC’’ proved fatal for the company’s prospects, the report found.

Notably, it concluded that the vast majority of the money owing, nearly $8.2 million, was destined for the tax man.

Morrissey disputed that figure this week, saying it was impossible since the company only turned over about $1 million annually and, astonishingly, never made a profit in nearly 10 years of trading.

City Beat has also learned that among the company’s clients was Brad Sherwin, the notorious Brisbane conman who pleaded guilty last month to fraud charges stemming from a $60 million investment crash.

Morrissey acknowledged that Audit Now, previously known as SMSF Audits, had reviewed about 250 super funds in the Sherwin empire, including some who invested in Sherwin’s now-defunct Wickham Securities. But Morrissey said the work ended in 2011 and he had no knowledge of any wrongdoing.

In a separate action, the ATO is still suing Morrissey personally for more than $5 million in allegedly unpaid taxes dating back to 2009.

Morrissey has not lodged a defence in that case, which was filed in February, but he says he intends to do so while also negotiating with the ATO.

Despite all his troubles, Morrissey and his wife control a substantial residential and commercial property portfolio. They continue to run a business trading as SMSF Audits, which he said is unrelated to the failed entity.

He also owns several race horses, including an American gelding dubbed “Looks Like Elvis,’’ and even thought it was a good idea to give your diarist a few tips.

Morrissey blamed much of his bad luck on several allegedly rogue former employees, one of whom he has reported to ASIC. That gent fired back this week to dismiss Morrissey’s allegations as ludicrous.

CLOAKROOM COCKTAILS

ONE of the latest entrants in Brisbane’s explosion of laneway culture presents a formidable challenge for potential clients.

How do you find the place?

The newly-opened Cloakroom Bar on Elizabeth Street is perched behind the very dapper Cloakroom menswear shop.

But there are no signs welcoming patrons to the joint. Access is only via an unmarked laneway next to the shop and up a flight of stairs.

Entrepreneurs Louis Ialenti and Andrew Byrne, who jointly own both venues, have gambled that the tiny, dimly lit watering hole will appeal to consumers looking for a very different drinking experience.

For starters, there’s no menu. Bartenders will craft a bespoke cocktail according to your own tastes.

Louis Ialenti at the Cloakroom Bar.

All the ice is made and carved up in-house. The pair also have plans to make their own vermouth.

Ten years after opening the menswear business, the gents have expanded to Tokyo and Montreal, which is Ialenti’s hometown.

When not fitting blokes with top-flight gear made in Japan or finetuning details in the bar, Ialenti somehow also finds the time to practice law.

Among his most recent clients is a former Canadian porn star who has pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing for her role in one of Australia’s biggest cocaine busts.

She was among three people discovered with 95kg of the white powder on the Sea Princess cruise ship when it arrived in Sydney last year.

The haul had an eye-watering street value of more than $30 million.