Chronology of Documents in Slater & Gordon Conveyancing File

s-g page ref / Date / Document / Comment / Attestation Clause
3 / 4/2/1993 Thu / S.P.O.A. / (Ostensibly) Signed Sealed and Delivered by Ralph Blewitt
10 / Undated / Cover sheet for S.P.O.A. / If S & G archived its backups of data files, discovery of the date of creation of the cover sheet and S.P.O.A. would be a vital piece of evidence.
328 / 13/2/1993 Sat / Contract of Sale / B M Wilson Purchaser Ralph Blewitt as per Power of Attorney
333 / 13/2/1993 Sat / Vendors Statement / B M Wilson Purchaser Ralph Blewitt as per Power of Attorney
297 / 16/2/1993 Tue / S & G handwritten note (author unknown) / Thomson & Co P/L to send copy of Sec 32 statement this afternoon. “To Elisha/JEG We need P/A or certified copy” (Heidi)
296 / 17/2/1993 Wed / S & G handwritten note (author unknown) / Exchange of tel. calls with Heidi of G A Thomson, estate agent. “Will let me have original P/A – she will need certified copy.”
234 / 22/2/1993 Mon / S & G letter to G A Thomson & Co Pty Ltd, Real Estate Agents / Letter encloses certified copy of S.P.O.A. The copy of the S.P.O.A. was not certified until the following day.
235-237 / 22/2/1993 Mon / S & G letter to Wilson / Letter encloses certified copy of S.P.O.A. The copy of the S.P.O.A. was not certified until the following day.
3 / 23/2/1993 Tue / Certified copy of S.P.O.A. / I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of the Specific Power of Attorney of that which it purports to be. Dated: the 23rd day of February 1993 Signed Olive Brosnahan, 562 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne, Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives
290 / 4/3/1993 Thu / Acknowledgment of receipt of information / Signed by Ralph Blewitt by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th February, 1993
142-144 / 10/3/1993 Wed / S & G letter of offer of mortgage loan to Blewitt / Signed by Ralph Blewitt by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th February, 1993
142-144 / 10/3/1993 Wed / S & G letter to Blewitt / Proposed mortgage loan to J M Rothfield. Acknowledgment of payment of “$500.00 towards valuation and search fees. (That same day) Signed by Ralph Blewitt by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th February, 1993
154 / Undated / Handwritten note (author unknown) (Wilson?) (see also 29/4/1993) / “Attn. Ms O Brosnahan. Please find enclosed cheque $500,00 being payment valuation fee (85 Kerr Street property). R Blewitt, PO Box 253 Northbridge 6003 Perth WA
140 and 141 / 12/3/1993 Fri / Memo Julia from Olly / Penalty interest on mortgage
65 / 18/3/1993 Thu / Acknowledgment of copy of common provisions of mortgage / Ralph Blewitt by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th February, 1993
68 / 18/3/1993 Thu / Authority to complete mortgage documents / Signed by the said Ralph Blewitt by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th day of February 1993
70 / 18/3/1993 Thu / Disbursement order / Signed by the said Ralph Blewitt by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th day of February 1993
96-99 / 18/3/1993 Thu / Answers to Requisitions on Title / Signed by the said Ralph Blewitt by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th day of February 1993
82 / 18/3/1993 ? / Acknowledgment in accordance with Rule 10(2) / Signed by the said Ralph Blewitt by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th day of February 1993
199 / 18/3/1993 / S & G letter from NOB to Blewitt, Duncraig WA / Request for bank cheque for $67,722.30 on or before Friday 19 March 1993. This letter was drafted in the knowledge that it could not possibly have reached Blewitt in WA in time for the bank cheque to be supplied the following day. This cheque is identified in the affidavit of Ian Cambridge as having been drawn on 18/3/1993 against the AWU Workplace Reform Association Inc cheque account (see pp. 7 and 17 of Cambridge affidavit sworn 19/9/1996). It was not a bank cheque.
57 / 22/3/1993 ? / Mortgage Victoria / Signed sealed and delivered by the Mortgagor by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th February 1993
58 / 22/3/1993 Mon / Transfer of Land (Vic LTO) / Signed by the said Ralph Blewitt by his Attorney Bruce Morton Wilson pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th day of February, 1993 in the presence of
185 / 22/3/1993 / Commonwealth Bank letter / Marked attention Julia Gillard, notifying $200,000 insurance on building 1/185 Kerr Street, Fitzroy. Gillard evidently originated the request for the certificate of insurance, not Olive Brosnahan or Sylvia Dickson.
170 / 20/4/1993 Tue / S & G letter to Blewitt / Request for $2,000 bank cheque to enable lodgment of transfer of land
169 / 29/4/1993 ? / Note from JEG to NOB (See also 154 for hand-writing on note behind JEG) / Cheque for costs Blewitt conveyance. Was this paid by AWU Workplace Reform Association Inc cheque #7 dated 5/4/1993 identified on p.17 of the Cambridge affidavit sworn 19/9/1996, or at least funded by that cheque?

Concerning the power of attorney:

1.  On 13 February 1993 Wilson signed the Contract of Sale and Vendors Statement “as per Power of Attorney”.

2.  On 4 March 1993 Wilson signed “pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney dated 4th February 1993” the Acknowledgment of Receipt of Information appended to the Deposit Statement to the Purchaser. This appears to be the first of such references to the SPOA in attestation clauses. All subsequent formal signings by Wilson related to the purchase of the property are accompanied by the words “pursuant to a Specific Power of Attorney…”.

3.  The SPOA appears to have been come into existence no later than 17 February 1993 or the previous day (see those dates above).

4.  One plausible explanation is that the SPOA was drafted within hours of the successful bid at auction (13/2/1993), whereupon Wilson immediately flew to Perth to have Blewitt sign it. Wilson then returned immediately with the signed document for Gillard to witness on Monday 15/2/1993 or the next day, following which it was placed in the hands of the real estate agent G A Thomson & Co Pty Ltd. It seems incontrovertible that the signed and witnessed SPOA was in Thomson’s hands no later than Wednesday 17/2/1993.

5.  Thomson returned the original SPOA to S & G between Wednesday 17 February and Tuesday 23 February for a copy or copies to be certified by Olive Brosnahan.