Powerball battle: Man who lost fight for share in prize win may have to pay legal costs
A man who lost his battle for a share in a $40m Powerball win has been told he may have to cough up the cash for his workmates' “substantial” legal fees after he claimed they cut him out of the winning syndicate.
Production manager Brendan King won just $12 in the draw while his work colleagues claimed $2.8m each.
The father-of-five will return to court in February where a magistrate will decide the 14 winners’ application for costs, The Daily Telegraph reports.
Mr King told the publication he would continue to seek justice in court and “the fight’s not over yet”.
“I don’t want to be rich. I’m seeking justice. What happened is just so unfair,” he said.
“I don’t know what happened that day we won. I still don’t.”
He claimed his fight for a share in the big prize was driven by justice, not a desire to be rich.
“Whatever happens, I’m still a millionaire as I have five beautiful children and a loving wife who are worth more than $2.6 million any day,” he said.
Syndicate organiser Robert Adams maintains he “did nothing wrong”.
Sources told the Daily Telegraph if Mr King were forced to pay the legal costs of his workmates it would be a “substantial” hit to his finances.
Last month Mr King’s bid for a share in the prize, which was won on May 4, 2016, was thrown out after it was heard two separate syndicates were operating.
The court heard on April 29, Mr Adams instigated a second syndicate involving 14 people. He had arrived at work half an hour after Mr King had left for the day and had purchased the ticket using funds he had received from the winning members. Mr King had not contributed.
Mr King argued the syndicate members had an agreement that they could pay retrospectively or enter a draw if they were not at work on the day.
His lawyer claimed Mr King had a right to be considered the 15th member of the winning syndicate, as he had always believed there was only one group entering lottery in the workplace.
