A cartel conduct case against Moses and Paul Obeid was brought to a halt after a banker giving evidence in the proceedings confessed he was "sleep deprived" from working on a late-night deal, prompting the judge to adjourn the hearing.
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In an extraordinary turn of events, Federal Court judge Lindsay Foster halted the hearing for more than three hours on Wednesday so that former Lehman Brothers banker and Obeid associate Gardner Brook could "get some sleep".
Justice Foster had asked if Mr Brook, who now works for Pan-Asia Capital Partners in Singapore, was having "difficulty coping" or suffering from "some sort of impairment" in giving evidence.
Concerns had been raised by Cameron Moore, SC, the barrister acting for the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission in the cartel conduct proceedings.
Mr Brook, a key witness in the ACCC's case, was cautioned by Justice Foster not to work on any more deals while giving evidence. He said the litigation was "very serious" and Mr Brook needed to treat it accordingly.
A contrite Mr Brook promised he would repair to his hotel room during the adjournment and refrain from working on transactions.
When the hearing resumed at 3pm following a 3.5 hour break, Justice Foster asked if Mr Brook felt "capable of coping" and paying attention.
"Yes, Your Honour," Mr Brook replied.
The ACCC is taking civil action for alleged cartel conduct against Moses and Paul Obeid, two of former NSW Labor minister Eddie Obeid's five sons, for striking an alleged deal with mining company Cascade Coal for an Obeid-controlled company to pull out of a government tender for coal exploration licences to pave the way for Cascade Coal to win.
Cascade won two of the licences in 2009, including one over the Obeid family's rural property Cherrydale Park.
The Federal Court has heard allegations "substantial benefits" flowed to the Obeids from the alleged deal, "including cash in the order of $28 million".
The competition watchdog is also pursuing Cascade Coal and two of its founding investors, Sydney businessmen John McGuigan and Richard Poole, for alleged cartel conduct, along with Mr McGuigan's son James.
Mr Brook was brought on board by the Obeids in 2008 to "form a relationship with a mining company", the court has heard. He was also responsible for raising finance for the deal.
Mr Moore said on Tuesday that Moses Obeid gave a handwritten list of bidders for the licences to Mr Brook and it was clear Moses "had information that was not publicly available".
But the barrister acting for the Obeids, Robert Newlinds, SC, said there was "no evidence it was confidential".
The case continues.
