Western suburbs real estate highflyer Vivien Yap has won a bid to stop her former client from airing “scandalous” details of their legal stoush online, a threat allegedly shared with the state’s top judge.
Western suburbs real estate highflyer Vivien Yap has secured orders preventing her former client from airing “scandalous” details of their legal stoush online, a threat allegedly shared with the state’s top judge.
The Ray White Dalkeith boss and her former Mount Claremont client Sandi Matic have been locked in a legal battle since February over allegations he threatened to disrupt her business because he was dissatisfied with her services.
But there has been another twist in the unrelenting battle, with Ms Yap now claiming Mr Matic lodged a fictitious security interest over one of her properties and threatened to publish “scandalous” and “defamatory” affidavits filed to public community notice boards.
Appearing before the Supreme Court this afternoon, the prominent real estate agent and her top lawyer Martin Bennett told the court the security interest was lodged just two hours before the court entered a final judgment restraining Mr Matic from causing her any economic harm.
“Rather than threatening economic harm, he caused it, by entering a fictitious security interest against Ms Yap,” Mr Bennett told the court.
Further, Mr Bennett told the court Mr Matic had been given 48 hours to remove the registration but had failed to do so.
The court was told Mr Matic, who did not appear before the court, threatened to publish the affidavits on his own court of record, dubbed ‘The People's Court of Terra Australis’, in an email to Chief Justice Peter Quinlan.
Mr Bennett told the court the affidavits included some never read in court, another that had not yet seen the light of day and another that was struck out for scandalous material.
“I fear there will be an attempt by Mr Matic to read affidavits unread, which will only cause further loss to Ms Yap and appears crafted to avoid permanent injunction,” he said.
“This appears to be another artful attempt to continue to impose harm towards Ms Yap and is a continuation of Mr Matic’s failure to recognise the authority of this court.”
Justice Marcus Solomon agreed to grant the interim injunction, revealing that court staff had also been attacked in the correspondence.
“There is a fairly unambiguous threat made to publish on the net or something called public notice boards affidavits relating to these matters,” he said.
“Given that would include material that is plainly, in my view, scandalous, I am persuaded it is appropriate to grant relief in absence of the defendant.
“It’s one thing for lawyers and the court to be subject to groundless and scandalous allegations, but for court staff to have to endure that sort of conduct, in my view, is intolerable.”
The security interest matter has been adjourned, with Mr Matic given just 10 days to file an appearance.
The fresh court battle is the latest twist in the unrelenting stoush, which has been in and out of court since February.
In May, Ms Yap won her legal bid for a permanent injunction restraining Mr Matic from attending her home opens and making good on threats to disrupt her business.
Ms Yap and her former Mount Claremont client crossed paths in June 2021, when Mr Matic and his wife engaged her to carry out a market appraisal on their home; which ultimately led to its sale six months later.
But he is adamant the home was sold for less than its actual value, airing plans to disrupt her business and advertise his grievances with a national relationship manager at the company.
Ms Yap has since filed a criminal contempt of court charge against Mr Matic over emails he sent to a judge, claiming he interfered with the administration of justice.
