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A tale of fraud, money laundering, and cover ups within the Sydney legal fraternity
Think it all sounds fanciful? Keep reading to see how the unsavoury saga unfolds.
Terry Goldberg
Lawyer and fraudster
The Turner Freeman partner and not so artful conman who falsifies court documents and uses the courts to his own end to steal money belonging to others.
Michael Jones
The dodgy liquidator and co-conspirator
Acts with his mate Terry to obtain monies by deception and place fraudulently obtained monies into a Trust disguised as a charity.
John McKenzie
The cover-up commissioner
The government appointed overseer who abuses his position as Legal Services Commissioner to facilitate and cover up organised crime.
In a letter to Michael Jones, liquidator, 19 May 2020
Tuesday, 19th May 2020
Mr Michael Jones
Managing Principal
Jones Partners, Insolvency and Business Recovery
Level 13, 189 Kent Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Mr Jones
Re: Fraud and money laundering
This letter serves as an addendum to my letter of yesterday.
No doubt, you will have had time to reflect on the purported minutes of a general meeting of 21st July 2016, which originated from your office. While the said minutes are redacted, what is clear to see is that there are 19 supposed creditors.
Now, this is most odd. As I was heavily involved with the now defunct entity that you improperly wound up, I can categorically state that there was only one valid creditor of the association at that time, being CBC Partners. Andrew Mitchell of CBC Partners went on to tell me that CBC Partners was paid in full by you sometime shortly after the sale of the church building back in 2011.
Also, NSW Fair Trading informed me that Turner Freeman was paid in full of the (fraudulent) debt it claimed, and was paid on 20th December 2012. So where have the remaining supposed creditors come from?
We see in the minutes of a non-quorate and invalid general meeting of members of 29th May 2014 (wherein Terence Goldberg of Turner Freeman was the only attendee), that the list of creditors has swelled somewhat, and also contains the names of people who had in fact already been paid.
It is of pertinent note that there are now two new claims in the list of creditors, as made by Parker Taylor and Quinn Martin Media, both of which were companies headed by the known shyster Frank Monte, with Mr Monte claiming to be owed a total of $14,110.00. Frank Monte had no involvement with our church in any way, shape, or form.
Now, of course, the names of the 19 supposed creditors in the minutes of 21st July 2016 have been redacted, so we have no way of knowing who they are. However, what we do know is that names of members have been falsified, so it leads to the obvious question as to whether the creditors on that said list are equally as fictitious as the names of the non-existent members.
As repeatedly stated, it would strongly appear that Jones Partners has fabricated not only memberships of an organisation, but has also fabricated creditors in order to strip a church and charity of its entire assets. It is difficult to conclude otherwise.
Also, our church building was sold in June 2011 for $965,000.00 and after creditors were paid there should have some $700,000 remaining. However, with creditors springing up out of nowhere that sum would probably have diminished, and yet, a sum in the region of $985k (supposedly the surplus as owned by the now defunct entity) was placed into a Trust of your making.
In relation to that excess, I refer to a letter to John Winter, CEO of ARITA, of 6th April 2020, with such correspondence dealing with a substantial excess of funds making their way into a Trust of your making. No doubt, your fellow principal Bruce Gleeson has provided you with a copy of such letter, however, in case he has not, I attach a copy of such for your reference. Mr Winter is yet to provide any response.
I, of course, attach copies of minutes of meetings as supposedly having taken place in your office of 13th April 2011, 29th May 2014, and 21st July 2016; with all of which containing differing amounts of creditors. It is of note that the number of creditors actually increases over time rather than decreases, which is what the normal course of events would be.
When drafting your response to my letter of 30th March 2020, explanations to the above anomalies should also be included.
I copy this letter to Kate McClymont, senior journalist at the Sydney Morning Herald.
Yours faithfully
In a letter to Michael Jones, liquidator, 18 May 2020
Monday, 18th May 2020
Mr Michael Jones
Managing Principal
Jones Partners, Insolvency and Business Recovery
Level 13, 189 Kent Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Mr Jones
Re: Fraud and money laundering
I refer to the above.
You have not provided any response to my letter of 30th March 2020 (copy attached), however, your providing information to interested parties, I have to say, is not quite your forte.
As you know, my letter to you of 30th March 2020 deals with the topic of fraudulently obtained monies passing through your office (taking five years to do so), with those same monies then being placed into a Trust, and then with a substantial excess of funds seemingly originating from your office also being placed into that same Trust.
Lest you forget, such Trust was co-created by both yourself and Terence Goldberg of Turner Freeman Lawyers.
On 21st July 2016, a purported meeting of the members of the Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated took place within the confines of Jones Partners, with one sole resolution being made (and passed) in that meeting, ie to provide the surplus monies as owned by that now defunct entity to the Trust as created by both yourself and Terence Goldberg.
Oddly enough, the date of this purported meeting coincides exactly with a letter as written to you by myself seeking information in relation to the location and whereabouts of those same funds.
As you also well know, in the latter part of 2016, a GIPA application was made for access to a copy of the minutes of the said general meeting which supposedly took place on 21st July 2016. On first having consulted with you, the Department of Finance, Services and Innovation obscured the names of the members as mentioned in such minutes, as you claimed that those named in such may come to ‘harm’ if such information were made public.
As we have since seen, the names of members of the church at that time were simply made up (see letter to Terence Goldberg of 12th February 2020), and your stating to the Department of Finance, Services and Innovation that those named may come to ‘harm’ was an obvious ploy to prevent such information becoming public knowledge.
Given that a meeting cannot take place with people who do not actually exist, the minutes of the aforesaid meeting of 21st July 2016 are an obvious concoction.
For obvious reasons, I attach a copy of the abovementioned minutes of 21st July 2016.
Yours faithfully
In a letter to Michael Jones, liquidator, 30 March 2020
Monday, 30th March 2020
Mr Michael Jones
Managing Principal
Jones Partners, Insolvency and Business Recovery
Level 13, 189 Kent Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Mr Jones
Re: Fraud and money laundering
I write to you as an ex-member of the now defunct Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated.
Firstly, I attach copy of correspondences to Terence Goldberg of Turner Freeman Lawyers of 4th November 2019 and 12th February 2020. This letter is to be read in conjunction with such. Mr Goldberg has so far declined to offer any response.
As can be seen in the two aforesaid letters, you appear to have acted in concert with Terence Goldberg in order to strip the above said incorporated association (and charity) of its substantial assets and place those and other funds of an unknown origin into a Trust, with such Trust having been set up by Mr Goldberg, with both your knowledge and sanction.
A sum in the region of $985,447.00 was placed into the said Trust by you in the latter part of 2016, with an amount of $492,307.00 departing that Trust shortly thereafter; leaving behind the sum of $493,140.00 (an almost precise half-half split).
The issue, of course, is that the sum of $985,447.00 far and away exceeds the remaining residue of the said incorporated association, which you liquidated while being fully aware of Terence Goldberg’s fraudulent activities and equally fraudulent claimed debt against our church, and is also evidently double the expected amount.
Given the appearance of a fraud and money laundering operation at play, I seek an explanation from you in relation to the origin of the abovementioned excess of monies and also the separate disappearance of funds.
I copy this letter to various authorities, and I look forward to your prompt response, however, like Mr Goldberg, I expect you will demur to do so.
Yours faithfully
In a letter to Turner Freeman Lawyers, 4 November 2019
Monday, 4th November 2019
Mr Terence Goldberg
Turner Freeman Lawyers
Level 12, 160 Sussex Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Mr Goldberg
Re: Supreme Court proceedings 2009/00291458-001
I refer to the Application for Assessment of Solicitor/Client Costs as filed with the Court by yourself on 23rd June 2010 in relation to the abovementioned Supreme Court proceedings. In such Application you state on multiple occasions that you acted for the Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated.
As you are well aware, the Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated was listed as the sixth defendant in the abovementioned Supreme Court proceedings. You are also well aware that the sixth defendant remains on the Court record as an unrepresented party, with no firm of solicitors acting on its behalf.
Given that you acted for the four plaintiffs in such proceedings, and given also that the sixth defendant was unrepresented in same, can you please explain to me your claim that you acted for the Enmore Spiritualist Church in such Application to the Court for assessment of your firm’s professional costs. As can be seen, the situation and your actual statement are distinctly dichotomous, as well as such scenario being a breach of Rule 7.25 of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules which states that a law firm cannot act for both and opposing parties in any same Court proceedings.
Further, in that same document, you explicitly state that there were only five defendants, when in fact there were six.
You are also well aware that the premises of 2 London Street, Enmore, was sold in June 2011 for $965,000.00 in order to pay your claimed debt of $124,661.90, although documents state that your firm was in fact paid the sum of $188,303.60 (on 20th December 2012). Given other claimed and disputed debts against our now defunct church, the monies remaining should have been in the region of some $700,000.00.
On perusing the website of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission, it is stated that in the financial year of 2016/2017, the remaining monies as belonging to our now defunct church were placed into a Trust, with such Trust having been set up by your firm.
Also, as per the same website, an amount in the region of $985,447.00 entered such Trust in that period. As can be plainly seen, this sum is far in excess of the remaining monies as belonging to the original entity.
Given the appearance of a distinct conflict of interest, are you able to explain your input in the creation of such Trust, and are you also able to explain the origins of the seeming excess of such funds?
At this point it is worthy of mention that your firm was in fact involved in the creation of two separate entities; one of which being the abovementioned Trust. Both of these said entities have been set up as charities with almost identical names, with the sole objective of the said Trust to provide funds to the second created entity. The second entity at this moment in time has no particular function, and holds little funds in its account, and a long-time acquaintance of yours, at the time of the second entity’s inception, was registered as the public officer of such.
The constitution of the original and now defunct entity provides that on the winding up of such that all assets belonging to it be provided to a likewise association or charity. It would appear that Turner Freeman therefore created likewise associations to receive those assets.
It remains pertinent that at the present moment in time, the ACNC website states that the abovementioned Trust now holds the amount of $517,980.00 in its account. The ACNC website also states that the said Trust had expenses of $492,307.00 in the financial year of 2016/2017. The cause of these expenses and where these funds went is presently unknown.
Also, and despite a number of various correspondences to you, the divergent statement that you acted for the sixth defendant (an unrepresented party) in Supreme Court proceedings when you acted for the four plaintiffs remains without any plausible or cogent explanation.
I also attach to this correspondence a previous letter to you of 15th November 2016 which relates directly to the above and which remains without any sort of reply from you or your firm.
Please let me know at your earliest convenience if any of the above is incorrect.
I copy this letter to various authorities, and I look forward to your swift response.
Yours faithfully
Wednesday, 12th February 2020
Mr Terence Goldberg
Equity Partner
Turner Freeman Lawyers
Level 12, 160 Sussex Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Mr Goldberg
Re: Improper conduct
I write further to and also in relation to my letter to you of 4th November 2019.
This letter is to be read in conjunction with such previous letter, and I attach copy of such for reference. To date, you have not provided any response.
As you know, you and your firm created both a Trust and a separate incorporated association, with both set up as charitable bodies, for the purposes of capturing the substantial residue of the now defunct Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated (“the original entity”).
Of course, we know that you and your firm created such entities as such is stated in the minutes of a ‘meeting of creditors’, which you attended at the offices of Jones Partners (“the Liquidator”) on 29th May 2014; and also, your firm’s name appears on the cover of the Constitution of the newly set up incorporated association, with your personal references dotted throughout the same document, ie “TLG:/125386”. I attach a copy of the said Constitution.
As you would be absolutely aware, the Trust as created with your input has only one objective, ie to provide funds to the newly created incorporated association. To date, the said incorporated association has no apparent function, and no apparent activities.
You are also absolutely aware that the original entity was the sixth defendant in Supreme Court proceedings in which you acted for the four plaintiffs (ie, 2009/00291458-001), and in which the sixth defendant was an unrepresented party, and from whom you improperly sought your clients’ costs.
I will focus on the Constitution of the newly created incorporated association for a moment. As you are no doubt aware, the last three pages of that document contain the names of 19 supposed memberships. However, having verified those names and addresses against the electoral roll, the details of one membership only appears to actually tally with such.
In fact, a number of the names as specified in the said membership list do not actually appear on the electoral roll at all. It is also interesting that the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission received a request, presumably from your firm, to obscure the last three pages of such document in order to prevent public scrutiny of the said membership details.
You are still to explain your attendance at the abovementioned meeting of creditors (with you being the sole attendee) at the offices of the Liquidator on 29th May 2014. As you know, NSW Fair Trading has confirmed that Turner Freeman was paid in full, by the Liquidator, of the debt claimed against the original entity on 20th December 2012.
It is also of note that in the abovementioned meeting of creditors of 29th May 2014, it is minuted that you personally discussed the creation of the abovementioned Trust and incorporated association, with such Trust ultimately being created on 16th December 2016, and the said incorporated association being registered with ASIC on 21st October 2015.
A letter from NSW Fair Trading of 17th October 2016 confirms the movement of the residue of funds as belonging to the original entity, again by the Liquidator, into the Trust you and your firm created. It is of interest as the date of such letter from NSW Fair Trading actually precedes the inception of the said Trust. One of the many anomalies and inconsistencies in this entire matter.
I await your response to this and to my previous correspondence to you.
Yours faithfully
John McKenzie, NSW Legal Services Commissioner, 2 June 2015
Tuesday, 28th November 2017
Mr John McKenzie
Legal Services Commissioner
Office of the Legal Services Commissioner
Level 9, 75 Castlereagh Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Mr McKenzie
Re: Terence Goldberg – fraud
Given the large number of conflicting statements in various letters received from you which give the appearance of confusion on your part in relation to the conduct of Terence Goldberg of Turner Freeman Lawyers, let me explain the matter to you in a very brief summary.
In February 2009, the financial members of the Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated (“the Church”), at its annual general meeting, voted and resolved to name eight persons as committee members of the Church.
Those eight persons were Patricia Cleary, Caroline Allen, Matilda Vila, Miranda McCarthy (aka Mandy Miami), Wendy Hemington, Recy Kypri, Chorel Terelinck, and myself. Patricia Cleary retained her long-running position as president, however, lost her 25 year tenure as treasurer to Chorel Terelinck. I was voted in as the vice-president.
On inspection of the Church’s finances, Chorel Terelinck, the new treasurer, discovered that certain anomalies existed. After much turmoil, this resulted in an audit of the Church’s finances and it was discovered that over $45,000.00 had been spent by Patricia Cleary in ‘non-receipted expenditure’ over the years of 2006, 2007 and 2008.
On closer inspection of the Church records, the finances for the years prior to 2006 showed a similar, if not identical, pattern of losses. Patricia Cleary refused to offer any explanation for her ‘non-receipted expenditure’.
As you can imagine, the Church members became quite irate. Various meetings were held, with the culmination of a special general meeting of the financial members on 10th September 2009, and in which it was resolved to dismiss the entire committee. The members of the Church also resolved to remove Patricia Cleary as president of the Church.
The first four people as mentioned above in paragraph 3 of this letter (ie, Cleary, Allen, Vila and McCarthy), with Terence Goldberg as their legal representative, commenced proceedings in the Supreme Court of NSW with the main aim of declaring invalid the meeting of the members of the Church which took place on 10th September 2009.
The remaining committee members as mentioned in paragraph 3 above (Hemington, Kypri, Terelinck, and Waters) were named as the first to four defendants. Mr Norm Power, an ordinary member of the Church, was named as the fifth defendant.
As you are already aware, the Church itself was named as the sixth and last defendant. This naming of the Church as a defendant would have the effect of binding the Church into any decision made by the Court.
As you already know, the Church was an unrepresented party in the proceedings.
The said proceedings were heard before the Honourable Justice Bergin, then Chief Judge in Equity on 27th November 2009. Her Honour made one Order only, ie: “Each party is to bear their own costs.”
The Church was not represented by Turner Freeman Lawyers and was therefore clearly and obviously not a client of Turner Freeman Lawyers.
If, as you have previously claimed, that Terence Goldberg acted for the Church and that the four plaintiffs brought about their action on behalf of the Church, the Church would have to have been a plaintiff in the matter.
On 23rd June 2010, Terence Goldberg, filed with the Supreme Court of NSW an Application for Assessment of Solicitor/Client Costs. In this document, Terence Goldberg makes the claim that he acted for the Church and that there were only five defendants in the proceedings. Both of these claims are false.
Despite the Church having been named as the sixth defendant in the aforementioned proceedings and clearly not being a client of Turner Freeman Lawyers, the Church was named as a Costs Respondent in the said Application for Assessment of Solicitor/Client Costs. This naming of the Church as a Costs Respondent is ostensibly fraudulent.
Having not been informed that the Church was in fact a defendant in the above proceedings, Assessor John Bartos, on 27th January 2011, issued a certificate of determination against the Church and Terence Goldberg’s four clients in the amount of $124,661.90.
On 15th February 2011, judgment was entered in the District Court of NSW in favour of Turner Freeman Lawyers and against Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated and Turner Freeman’s four clients.
As you can see from the above, the matter is quite clear. Terence Goldberg misled the Court in order to create a debt which was not owed to his firm. For whatever reason, you consistently deny this to be case, despite the obviousness of the matter.
I also refer to and attach a copy of my letter to you of 27th October 2016. You have refused to provide any response to this letter. My letter to you of 27th October 2016 provided a copy of all Court documentation relating to the above, with that documentation providing unerring evidence that Terence Goldberg did not act for Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated.
Despite such, you stated again in correspondence of 7th August 2017 that Terence Goldberg acted for the Church in the said proceedings. That statement as made by you is false.
Also, you are aware that Terence Goldberg attended an unlawful meeting of creditors on 29th May 2014, despite Turner Freeman having been paid in full of the supposed debt owed to it on 20th December 2012. Terence Goldberg’s attendance at such supposed meeting of creditors is clearly improper.
Terence Goldberg discussed the creation of a new entity at this unlawful meeting.
The remaining funds belonging to the Church have since made their way to the address of that new entity, which, coincidentally, is the given home address of two long-time acquaintances of Mr Goldberg.
Multiple frauds have clearly taken place and your office has taken every step necessary in attempting to cover up such. All the above has been personally made known to you on countless different occasions and your unfailing turning of a blind eye to such must be deliberate.
A copy of this letter shall be provided to the Independent Commission Against Corruption, and a copy of such shall also be placed in the public domain.
I look forward to your swift response.
Yours faithfully
From minutes of ‘meeting of creditors’ at Jones Partners (liquidator), 29 May 2014
Your reference: R53129
Monday, 27th November 2017
Mr John McKenzie
Legal Services Commissioner
Office of the Legal Services Commissioner
Level 9, 75 Castlereagh Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Mr McKenzie
Re: Complaint about Fiona Seaton – request for internal review
I refer to your letter of 17th November 2017. In such correspondence, you state:
“…arising from Mr Goldberg’s representation of the late Reverend Patricia Cleary and other members of the Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated in relation to the litigation that concluded in 2009 and subsequent dissolution of the Church.”
It is of note from your above written statement that you appear to have resiled from your previous position, in that you are no longer claiming that Terence Goldberg acted for the sixth Defendant (being the Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated), in the proceedings to which you refer, and you now correctly state that Mr Goldberg acted for a number of individuals.
If so, this is in direct conflict to your statements as made in your letter of 7th August 2017. I attach a copy of that letter (as well as copies of my responses).
You are fully aware of Mr Goldberg’s fraudulent statement in an Application for Assessment of Solicitor/Client Costs, as filed with the Supreme Court of NSW on 23rd June 2010, in that Mr Goldberg wrongly claims that he acted for Enmore Spiritualist Church Incorporated in the said proceedings.
You are aware that Mr Goldberg did not act for the sixth Defendant in such proceedings, as that Defendant was an unrepresented party and remains as such on the Court record.
Given your own varying and contradictory stances in relation to the above, can you please confirm and clarify your exact position.
Given the Order as made by her Honour in the abovementioned proceedings that each party was to pay their own costs, and as Terence Goldberg did not act for the sixth Defendant in such proceedings, please explain to me how Mr Goldberg sued such Defendant to pay his legal costs.
A copy of this letter shall be provided to the Independent Commission Against Corruption and will also be placed into the public domain.
I await your response.
Yours faithfully
In a letter from Symn Waters to John McKenzie, 31 August 2017
One of Terence Goldberg’s many untrue statements in an Application for Assessment of Solicitor/Client Costs, as filed with the Supreme Court on 23 June 2010
John McKenzie’s untrue statements in his letter of 7 August 2017
In a letter from Michael Jones (Jones Partners, liquidator) to Church member, 7 November 2012
In a letter from Symn Waters to John McKenzie, 10 August 2017
Terence Goldberg’s untrue statements on oath in the Local Court, Sydney, 26 February 2016
John McKenzie, 7 August 2017
From minutes of non-quorate and unlawful meeting of creditors at Jones Partners (liquidator), 29 May 2014, in which Terence Goldberg was the sole attendee and not a creditor of the association
In a letter from Symn Waters to John McKenzie, 27 October 2016 No response was received
