The QANTAS Hostie and Ralph Fiennes

If you are not aware of the sordid story of a mile high encounter between Ralph Fiennes and Flight attendant Lisa Robertson, their mid-air tryst made headlines in January 2007. Lisa Robertson, at the time of the incident was an undischarged bankrupt, having filed for bankruptcy in 2004 with disclosed personal debts of $460,000.00. On the 8th of December 2009 Ms Robertson was found guilty in a Victorian court or one count of concealing a large sum of money and one count of attempting to leave the country.

As a result of the mid air incounter with Mr Fiennes, Ms Robertson shot to fame. With different tabloid vying for her “tell-all story,” Ms Robertson closed a deal worth $201,000.00.

During the three years of bankruptcy all income over a certain income threshold goes to creditors. In Ms Robertson’s case, the threshold would have been approximately $42,000.00/year after tax. One would assume that Ms Robertson would earn at least that as Qantas flight attendent, meaning that the whole $201,000.00 would have gone to her creditors.

Ms Robertson attempted to have the $201,000.00 paid to an unnamed third party in at attempt to defraud her creditors out of the bankruptcy dividends.

To make matters worse, now “unemployed,” Ms Robertson also attempted to fly to Thailand “to escape media attention”.
The bankruptcy act allows people to earn a reasonable amount of money while allowing creditors to recieve some money if the client is a high income earner or receives a windfall.

Ms Robertson pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentanced to 100hrs of community service and ordered to undertake ongoing drug and alcohol assesment and treatment.

It is almost impossible to conceal money from Bankruptcy Trustees. The end result will be a criminal conviction and you’ll have to pay; the money will go to creditors anyway.