Hogan’s tax case begins hearing in Sydney Federal Court
Crocodile Dundee star Paul Hogan is set to argue his case as the tax fraud case filed against the Australian commenced its hearing on Monday in the Federal Court of Sydney.
The defendants also include Mr Hogan's manager John Cornell and the duo's financial adviser, Tony Stewart, as all three face accusations lodged by the Australian Tax Office (ATO) that they avoided paying tax dues of up to $37 from earnings since the 1980s.
The amount was allegedly culled from Mr Hogan's series of Crocodile Dundee films, which the Tax Office said was funnelled through overseas accounts to mislead authorities in hopes of dodging tax responsibilities.
Also, the Australian Crime Commission (ACC) would be actively participating in the celebrated tax fraud case, mainly to determine if the more than 1200 documents to be presented during the litigation could be utilised as bases for criminal proceedings against Mr Hogan and company.
Sources said that most of the documents involved in the case were obtained from the United States, prompting the defence panel to summon as witnesses a number of legal experts from the US.
Mr Hogan's defence team argued that considerable differences in legal protection from both the Australian and United States frameworks would necessitate the testimony of witnesses knowledgeable on US tax and legal questions.
The US-based Australian actor rose to fame on the back of his appearances on the Crocodile Dundee film series and he was briefly prevented from leaving the country following a visit earlier this year to attend his mother's funeral.