Billionaire’s Alex Waislitz, Heloise Pratt ask for early final hearing in court fight

A court case between billionaires Alex Waislitz and Heloise Pratt could come to a speedy end, with their lawyers telling a court they planned to ask for an early final hearing date.

Heloise Pratt and Fiona Geminder. NCA. Picture: Jason Edwards

A court fight between billionaires Alex Waislitz and Heloise Pratt could come to a speedy end, with their lawyers telling a court they planned to ask for an early final hearing date.

The Australian revealed in late November that Ms Pratt accused her ex-husband Mr Waislitz of “criminality” and acting “dishonestly” by paying himself and his charitable foundation $1.147m without her knowledge and approval.

Ms Pratt alleged Mr Waislitz withheld board documents and financial information from her in relation to the $1.3bn Thorney Investments, which Mr Waislitz runs and which is jointly owned by him and Ms Pratt, and other related companies.

Heloise Pratt. Picture: Patrick McMullan/Getty Images

During a brief directions hearing in the Supreme Court of Victoria on Friday, lawyers for Mr Waislitz said the opportunity to lodge counter claims and defences will close by late January.

“We will be asking for an early final hearing,” the court heard.

For Mr Waislitz, the defence said they may need to argue an oppression claim, where directors and shareholders “may need to fight it out” instead of involving a number of corporate entities in the matter.

As well, the court heard the parties agreed it was unnecessary to make directions about documents or any application for a new trustee, presumably for the Halex family trust which is currently jointly controlled by Mr Waislitz and Ms Pratt.

Ms Pratt’s pleadings, lodged in November, reveal she hoped to strip Mr Waislitz of control of their Halex family trust, saying he “acted dishonestly for his own benefit and engaged in criminality” when making the $1.147m payment in 2017 from Jamahjo.

Jamahjo has ownership of the privately held Thorney Investment Group Australia.

Rebekah Behbahani and Alex Waislitz with their daughter Storm. Picture: Supplied/Stormness Records

Mr Waislitz has denied the allegations, and previously said “it appears to be a highly provocative and unbecoming action in response to failed negotiations which had up until now been kept private.”

“I will be vigorously defending this inflammatory and damaging claim and will have further to say in coming weeks,” Mr Waislitz said in a statement.

As previously revealed by The Australian’s Margin Call column, Ms Pratt and Mr Waislitz had been attempting to negotiate through solicitors over the ownership and control of Thorney Investments, which was started by Mr Waislitz in the early 1990s but also jointly owned by Ms Pratt.

The pair married in 1994 and remained on financially amicable terms following their separation in 2015. Ms Pratt sought to finalise the terms of their separation over the past 24 months, but those talks have broken down over the past year.

Alex Waislitz and Rebekah Behbahani. Picture: Mark Stewart

Ms Pratt has alleged in the court documents that Mr Waislitz breached the Crimes and Corporations Act, amid a series of allegations including that he did not inform her about several appointments to the board of Thorney and other entities, falsified board records and passed resolutions at board meetings about the flow of dividends that she was unaware of.

“Alexander Waislitz has dishonestly obtained property for himself and [an entity called] WCC as trustee for [The Waislitz] Foundation in contravention of s.81 of the Crimes Act,” Ms Pratt claimed in court documents obtained by The Australian.

“Whilst Alexander Waislitz has (either alone or with Ashley West) exercised de facto control over the Halex Family Trust, Alexander Waislitz has … acted dishonestly for his own benefit and engaged in criminality.

“(Mr Waislitz) purported to appoint trust income either for his own benefit or for the benefit of WCC as trustee of the foundation, to the exclusion of the other beneficiaries of the Halex Family Trust, most particularly his children as specified beneficiaries and his now former wife.”

Mr West is the general legal counsel at Thorney and a board member of companies and entities including Thorney Investment Group Australia and Jamahjo.

The case continues.