Prologue: The Road We Should Never Have Taken
In 1994, several Australian Senators convinced four citizens; then the four became twelve, and within a month, that group became twenty-one, to have their grievances with the Telstra Corporation arbitrated rather than the traditional court process, where a judge decides the fate of those before it. This group, known as the Casualties of Telstra, has since that time suffered suicides, drug overdoses to mask the pain left by arbitration, failed marriages, heart attacks and early deaths through stress of a six-week arbitration process lasting 12 months, two years and in some instances three years. This was not arbitration; this process was designed to destroy the soul so that those who were still left fighting had nothing left to fight with. Welcome to the Telstra COT arbitrations.
The arbitration that was the lie to be believed — the lie the COT Cases were meant to believe. A quicker path, a cleaner path, a path free from the cost and chaos of the courts. The COT Cases were ordinary Australians, told they would be treated fairly, that the process was independent, and that the truth would finally have its day.
But the moment the COT Cases stepped onto that path, they felt the ground shift beneath them.
What they walked into wasn’t justice. It was an ambush.
The safeguards they were promised — the independent assessors, the impartial administrators, the oversight mechanisms — dissolved the moment they reached for them. They were never real. They were theatre. The real decisions were already made, whispered in back rooms between bureaucrats and corporate executives long before any of them filed a claim.
The COT Cases' outcomes weren’t judged. They were arranged.
And the people meant to protect fairness? They weren’t guardians. They were collaborators. Watchdogs who guarded nothing but the reputations of the powerful. Umpires who accepted doctored reports, missing documents, and falsified test results while assuring the COT Cases everything was “above board.” Their neutrality was a costume. Their integrity is a script.
The system wasn’t broken. It was working exactly as intended.
The deception began with promises — written promises — from a government‑owned telecommunications carrier. They assured the COT Cases that they would receive the necessary documents. They assured that transparency would guide the process. But the moment the COT Cases agreed to fund their own arbitrations, the mask slipped. Suddenly, the evidence they were guaranteed became “delayed,” “unavailable,” or “under review.” The truth was quietly locked away.
Months later, when a few scraps finally surfaced — long after the COT Cases' claims were lost — they arrived mutilated. Pages blacked out. Sentences amputated. Names and dates erased. No numbering system. No way to trace what had been withheld.
The COT Cases were not dealing with a fair process. They were dealing with a defendant controlling the evidence while pretending to participate in justice. A web of deceit designed to keep them blind, isolated, and powerless. They held the documents. They controlled the timing. They decided what the COT Cases saw — and what would be concealed.
And they had the audacity to call it arbitration.
What followed was not bureaucracy. It was psychological warfare. Letters ignored. FOI requests stalled. Evidence vanished. The COT Cases' private communications were intercepted. Goalposts moved without warning. Every step forward met with another invisible wall.
Even seasoned politicians struggled to absorb the scale of it. One Senator nearly broke down after reading the evidence — not because it was exaggerated, but because it was too real, too detailed, too damning. This was not the work of a few rogue actors. It was a network: officials, consultants, lawyers, executives. Each playing their part. Each maintained the illusion of legitimacy while the truth was quietly suffocated.
And the most chilling truth of all?
We now know this may not have been an isolated event. It may have been a template — used before, and perhaps still used today.
This is the story of what happened when the COT Cases chose arbitration over a judge. A story of truth treated as a threat, of whistleblowers punished, of institutions protecting themselves at any cost.
A story of a system that watched the COT Cases, monitored them, and quietly assessed every step they took — even as they tried to expose it.
This is the road the COT Cases took.
And this is the warning for anyone who thinks arbitration is the safer path.
Telstra-Corruption-Freehill-Hollingdale & Page
Corrupt practices persisted throughout the COT arbitrations, flourishing in secrecy and obscurity. These insidious actions have managed to evade necessary scrutiny. Notably, the phone issues persisted for years following the conclusion of my arbitration, established to rectify these faults
Confronting Despair
The independent arbitration consultants demonstrated a concerning lack of impartiality. Instead of providing clear and objective insights, their guidance to the arbitrator was often marked by evasive language, misleading statements, and, at times, outright falsehoods.
Flash Backs – China-Vietnam
In 1967, Australia participated in the Vietnam War. I was on a ship transporting wheat to China, where I learned China was redeploying some of it to North Vietnam. Chapter 7, "Vietnam—Vietcong," discusses the link between China and my phone issues.
A Twenty-Year Marriage Lost
As bookings declined, my marriage came to an end. My ex-wife, seeking her fair share of our venture, left me with no choice but to take responsibility for leaving the Navy without adequately assessing the reliability of the phone service in my pursuit of starting a business.
Salvaging What I Could
Mobile coverage was nonexistent, and business transactions were not conducted online. Cape Bridgewater had only eight lines to service 66 families—132 adults. If four lines were used simultaneously, the remaining 128 adults would have only four lines to serve their needs.
Lies Deceit And Treachery
I was unaware of Telstra's unethical and corrupt business practices. It has now become clear that various unethical organisational activities were conducted secretly. Middle management was embezzling millions of dollars from Telstra.
An Unlocked Briefcase
On June 3, 1993, Telstra representatives visited my business and, in an oversight, left behind an unlocked briefcase. Upon opening it, I discovered evidence of corrupt practices concealed from the government, playing a significant role in the decline of Telstra's telecommunications network.
Not Fit For Purpose
AUSTEL investigated the contents of the Telstra briefcases. Initially, there was disbelief regarding the findings, but this eventually led to a broader discussion that changed the telecommunications landscape. I received no acknowledgement from AUSTEL for not making my findings public.
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A Government-backed Arbitration
An arbitration process was established to hide the underlying issues rather than to resolve them. The arbitrator, the administrator, and the arbitration consultants conducted the process using a modified confidentiality agreement. In the end, the process resembled a kangaroo court.
A Non-Graded Arbitrator
Who granted the financial and technical advisors linked to the arbitrator immunity from all liability regarding their roles in the arbitration process? This decision effectively shields the arbitration advisors from any potential lawsuits by the COT claimants concerning misconduct or negligence.<
The AFP Failed Their Objective
In September 1994, two officers from the AFP met with me to address Telstra's unauthorised interception of my telecommunications services. They revealed that government documents confirmed I had been subjected to these violations. Despite this evidence, the AFP did not make a finding.&am
The Promised Documents Never Arrived
In a February 1994 transcript of a pre-arbitration meeting, the arbitrator involved in my arbitration stated that he "would not determination on incomplete information.". The arbitrator did make a finding on incomplete information.
