NAAJA CEO made credit card fraud claim to ‘bully, harass’ CFO Madhur Evans, court hears

The tense exchange prompted the judge to warn ‘pulling faces, smirking, reacting to the evidence of any witness’ would not be tolerated while booting several people from the public gallery.

A top executive of the Territory’s largest legal aid agency claimed a complaint by her boss that she was “defrauding” the organisation was made “to undermine, harass and bully” her, a court has heard.

North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency chief executive Priscilla Atkins is suing her employer in the Federal Court after NAAJA tried to sack her amid a bitter falling out last year.

On Thursday, Ms Atkins’ barrister Malcolm Harding SC told the court his client had alleged NAAJA’s chief financial officer Madhur Evans was “defrauding NAAJA” by claiming credit card reimbursements she was not entitled to.

Under cross examination by Mr Harding, NAAJA chairwoman Colleen Rosas agreed the allegation was a “red flag” but she did not tell Ms Atkins that Ms Evans had claimed the complaint was “designed to push me out” when asked for a response.

“The NAAJA board, the 15 years that I’ve been involved, we were not to have contact with staff, we would never get involved at that level of operation and my thought was ‘Well has she been pulled up on this?’,” she said

“This was completely out of the blue, this complaint, I had no idea this complaint was going to come through, I was just as shocked as the other two directors who received it.”

Ms Rosas said she also did not seek a similar response from Ms Atkins to another “allegation of potential credit card fraud” against her after she “went on workers comp and there was allegations that I bullied and harassed her”.

NAAJA chairwoman Colleen Rosas said she was ‘thoroughly disgusted with how I was yelled at’ by chief executive Priscilla Atkins. Picture: Che Chorley

“When she rang me when I was travelling from Katherine to Darwin and she was going, yelling, and I was saying ‘We need to work through this’, I wanted to sit down and talk and try and work out what happened,” she said.

“Unfortunately, somebody had gossiped about the meeting and told her she was under investigation, she was not under investigation.

“So I had no further contact to try and give Ms Atkins any options to make anything because I did not want to be put in the position of (being accused of) trying to bully her.”

Ms Rosas said “as a senior Aboriginal woman, I was thoroughly disgusted with how I was yelled at”, at which point Justice Natalie Charlesworth interrupted proceedings to eject several members of the public sitting behind Ms Atkins from the courtroom.

“If I see anybody else pulling faces, smirking, reacting to the evidence of any witness, any party, I’ll close the court, if I have to,” she said.

The trial continued on Thursday afternoon.

NAAJA boss threatened with defamation amid sacking scandal

An embattled Aboriginal legal aid boss was threatened with defamation action the day before her wrongful dismissal case in the Federal Court, a court has heard.

North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency chief executive Priscilla Atkins is suing the government-funded legal aid agency in the Federal Court after being allegedly booted.

On Wednesday the court heard the board chose to terminate her following an independent audit of her role, which claimed she purchased a fleet of vehicles using a “novated lease” arrangement that was not approved by the board, and planned to cash out her annual leave entitlements to reimburse the costs.

But Ms Atkins has made counter corruption claims against NAAJA, alleging they failed to investigate her concerns about the chief financial officer, which focused on contract cost blowouts, missing computers, improper travel allowances and an offer on a Katherine property without board approval.

On the third day of the hearing Ms Atkins’s barrister Malcolm Harding SC revealed that right before the high-profile hearing, NAAJA board member Rebecca Moore had threatened legal action over statements made by Ms Atkins.

Ms Moore told the court that six months ago Ms Atkins allegedly defamed her in claims to the media and in letters sent to MLA Bill Yan and her local political representative.

Barrister for North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency chief executive Priscilla Atkins Malcolm Harding SC. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

She denied that this defamation threat was intended to stifle Ms Atkins’ testimony or affect her evidence, saying her solicitor's letter the day before the hearing was for unrelated reasons.

The NAAJA Southern Region director repeatedly rejected that the board improperly “dismissed” Ms Atkins’ concerns about suspected wrongdoing by her chief financial officer, Madhur Evans.

The court heard Ms Atkins had raised to the board allegations Ms Evans used her personal credit cards with reimbursement claims not recorded and travel allowances longer than her approved dates.

Mr Harding said Ms Atkins suggested there was something “untoward” in an Information and Communication Technologies contract which had blown out by $100,000 and a number of missing old computers.

Ms Moore said it was her view that it was Ms Atkins’s responsibility to manage any disciplinary actions against her subordinates.

North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency chief executive Priscilla Atkins leaves the Federal Court where she is suing NAAJA over an employment dispute. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

“My problem is that we’re paying a CEO the salary that we were paying her, she should have known where they (the computers) were,” Ms Moore said.

Ms Moore said Ms Evans was contacted about the allegations and given the opportunity to respond “under natural justice”.

Ms Evans has previously denied the allegations made against her.

Mr Harding repeatedly asked why Ms Atkins was not afforded the same opportunity during an auditor’s investigation by BDO Australia.

Ms Moore revealed the final report was presented to the board without her response, with the legal aid leaders allegedly opting to terminate her employment during a January 12 meeting.

She said based on legal advice, the board then offered Ms Atkins an opportunity to respond seven days later.

“It would have made no difference whatsoever what Ms Atkins said in her response, you were going to sack her anyway,” Mr Harding said.

“That’s not correct,” Ms Moore responded.

Ms Moore said Ms Atkins was given multiple extensions to her deadline, she did not submit a full response to the allegations.

She said a 45-minute meeting between herself, chairwoman Colleen Rosas, and fellow board member Natalie Ellis on January 20 had “enacted” the earlier decision to terminate Ms Atkins’ appointment.

The hearing continues on Thursday.