ALBURY businessman Allan Endresz has raised the stakes in a marathon legal case with the federal government by serving an application which could result in a damages payment being more than the $4.3 billion originally sought.
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An application to set aside the judgments of Justice Richard Refshauge from a 2013 ruling where Mr Endresz and associates were ordered to pay the government $70 million compensation was lodged with the ACT Supreme Court of Appeal on Monday.
The application is a separate action to an appeal on Justice Refshauge's finding on 88 grounds already underway.
Backed by advice from a former federal court judge, the "ex debito justiciae" application, if successful will result in the entire proceedings being set aside and becoming a massive win for the defendants.
The application is set down for May 11 before the full bench of the ACT Supreme Court of Appeal and shapes as the long-awaited D-Day in the legal battle dating back to 1998.
The grounds for application tendered on Monday state the Commonwealth's success on Justice Refshauge's judgments and orders were founded on causes of action that were not endorsed on the originating process.
"The judgment and orders were made against all applicants except Davis Samuel Pty Ltd and CTC Resources in circumstances where those parties were not endorsed as parties on the originating process and were not served with the originating process," the documents state.
Mr Endresz said: "Our advice is this has been a procedural and administrative disaster.
"The $4.3 billion claim will be fought to the nth degree and is only just part of it."
The saga began with the unauthorised transfer of about $8.72 million of taxpayers' money to companies linked to Davis Samuel Corporate Advisory Services.
The money was subsequently reinvested.
A criminal prosecution of 26 Davis Samuel investors failed and the group responded with a $4.3 billion civil claim against the Commonwealth for lost earnings associated with a capital-raising plan.
Mr Endresz and associates successfully argued government negligence caused the illegal transfer of money.
But after five years Justice Refshauge struck out the claim in 2013 and ordered 13 defendants to pay the Commonwealth almost $70 million in compensation.
Treasury has previously listed the case as a financial risk for the federal government.
The federal budget will be handed down the day before the application will be deliberated on.
