Bill Papas’s former solicitor gives Forum founder’s Greek mobile to Federal Court, Westpac

Forum Finance founder Bill Papas has had his Greek mobile number submitted to the Federal Court, giving Westpac the chance to formally serve him with court documents.

Forum founder Bill Papas photographed last month at an apartment in Thessaloniki, Greece.

Forum Finance founder Bill Papas has had his Greek mobile number submitted to the Federal Court, to facilitate Westpac being able to formally serve him with a contempt of court motion and other documents.

Mr Papas’s former solicitor Rocco Panetta provided the Greek contact number in a court affidavit, after being required to do so, while also appearing to explain whether he had an address for his former client.

That comes after Mr Papas left Australia for Greece in mid-June and then more recently disabled a personal email address that Westpac and Forum’s liquidators were using to contact him.

Westpac wants the Federal Court to find Mr Papas in contempt of court, due to damning allegations he breached an order not to access his frozen bank and financial accounts. They served the contempt motion to Mr Panetta’s office last month before learning he had stopped acting for Mr Papas.

Westpac, Societe Generale and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation are separately pursuing Forum and Mr Papas over allegations of a $400m fraud relating to the equipment leasing firm. The court cases include claims of Mr Papas and Forum drawing up fake invoices and forging customer signatures to secure bank finance.

Federal Court Judge Michael Lee ordered access to Mr Papas’s Greek mobile be provided to the three banks, while Forum liquidator McGrathNicol was also allowed access. More broadly, though, Justice Lee suppressed the Greek mobile being made publicly available via court documents, saying it could negatively impact the case.

“The notice (from Mr Panetta ceasing to act for Mr Papas) nominated an address at Rozelle in NSW as the last known residential or business address for Mr Papas. Of course, it was common ground that the peripatetic Mr Papas is not resident in Rozelle but has remained, despite suggestions from time to time that he would return to Australia, in Greece,” Justice Lee said.

“Various efforts were made to procure a proper address for service unsuccessfully, and it was against this background the application was made.”

Mr Panetta said he did not know Mr Papas’s address in Greece but his client had provided him with the Greek mobile number, asking he not to share it.

“He telephoned me from that number at some stage,” Mr Panetta told the court. “He said words to the effect that ‘this is my Greek number, my number in Greece … please do not give it to anybody else’.”

References to Mr Panetta’s affidavit mentioned he had contact with Mr Papas via telephone, WhatsApp and Signal.

Justice Lee said it was not in the public interest to allow Mr Papas’s Greek mobile to be widely available, due to the chance he would switch the service off to avoid calls from journalists.

“Even if there is a perception by Mr Papas that the … Greek telephone number has become open to all, there is at least a realistic possibility that it will no longer become an appropriate vehicle for which service can be effected of court documents,” he added.

“This is an unusual case. There is a need for Westpac to contact Mr Papas in order to provide him, by way of service, documents in the proceedings.”

Justice Lee rebutted attempts from Mr Panetta’s barrister to restrict access of the Greek mobile number for the liquidators.

Westpac’s barrister Jeremy Giles SC said the bank would send text messages to Mr Papas to serve any court documents and also provide him with the link to listen or participate in future hearings.

Mr Giles also made the point that Mr Panetta’s address also had not been formally changed as a way of contacting Mr Papas, and the bank may avail itself of that option too.

Justice Lee did not make an order for costs relating to Wednesday’s hearing, despite expressing annoyance at Mr Panetta.

“Leave aside my irritation that perhaps this could have been done a lot more efficiently and Mr Panetta could have made himself a little bit more available... I don‘t think it’s appropriate to make an order for costs.”

If Mr Papas is found to be in contempt of court he may be fined or imprisoned, although matters are complicated by the fact he remains in Greece.