List of articles in the ‘02 Apology Deception’ category

In late 2006 I wrote to John McFarlane - copy to Tim L’Estrange [ANZ's Chief Legal Counsel and Company Secretary] with a view that ANZ should settle the matter.  My legal fees alone were over $200,000 and ANZ were throwing an enormous effort in what could only be described as a hopeless case from their side.

It was apparent that no-one from ANZ wanted to admit that they were wrong and Freehills were undoubtedly happy to receive fees from ANZ -estimated to be over $1million. 

In response to my letter to McFarlane he request L’Estrange to follow-up on my offline reconciliation. A key element of my non-legal remedy was a letter of apology.

L’Estrange initially proved a draft of an “apology letter” that he claimed he drafted [but Freehills were the authors coincidentally on 31May 2006 the first day of a court ordered mediation - as per the document's Properties] so from the outset L’Estrange was disingenuous.

This document provides background to the drafting by me of the letter of apology that followed from L’Estranges’s [read Freehills] first efforts. 

02c-apology-redraft-to-tim

This document represent a contemporary potted history of how the draft letter of apology arose and the other aspects of what was discussed at the attempt at a non-legal settlement approach.

The approach failed as ANZ were clearly not genuine in their attempt at a settlement.

 02b-comments-draft-letter-of-apology

This was the original Draft Apology Letter offered by L’Estrange in September 2006.  Read carefully it was not an apology at all as it referes to if “any” wrongs were done toward me rather than “the” wrongs.  Neeedless to say whilst L’Estrange claimed to have drafted the letter himself, the Properties oif the document reveal it was authored by Frrehills on 31 May 2006.  This date coincided with the first day of mediation where i reaised the issue of an apology letter as part of a mediated settlement.

It was apparent that in the non-legal settlement arrangement over coffee, L’Estrange was disingenerous in his attempts at a settlement.  Remebering also it was L’Estrange that wrote to me on 9th November 2005 indicating ANZ take whistleblowing very seriously.

It was later revealed on 31st May 2006 that contrary to what L’Estrange had written, ANZ had done nothing with the Whistleblower’s Statement as provided some 18 months earlier. In short L’Estrange was not to be trusted.

 02a-tim-lest-original-apology-letter-rec-6-9-06