By Stephen Gibbs for Daily Mail Australia

Published: 18:51 EDT, 23 May 2022 | Updated: 18:58 EDT, 23 May 2022

Guy Sebastian has had several prickly exchanges with the lawyer defending his long-time manager over charges he embezzled almost $900,000 from the Australian Idol winner.

Sebastian has been in the witness box of the Downing Centre District Court in Sydney for a week now and his evidence included multiple tetchy moments on Monday. 

The Crown alleges Sebastian was underpaid at least $886,175.10 by Day in performance fees, royalties and an ambassadorship between 2013 and 2020. 

Day, 49, has pleaded not guilty to 50 charges of embezzlement as a clerk or servant, and 50 alternative counts of stealing. 

Guy Sebastian has had several prickly exchanges with the lawyer defending his long-time manager over charges he embezzled almost $900,000 from the Australian Idol winner

Australian Idol winner Guy Sebastian is giving evidence against Titus Day who is facing trial in the New South Wales District Court in Sydney Sebastian is pictured with wife Jules

His barrister, Dominic Toomey SC, is taking Sebastian through invoices, payment statements and banking records, many of which the singer says he does not recall seeing.

When presented with one document Sebastian sought to ask if it had ever been sent to him.

'The way this works is that I ask the questions and you answer them,' Mr Toomey told Sebastian.

Sebastian: 'I'm just trying to understand what you're putting in front of me.'

The ARIA-winner has been reminded several times by Judge Tim Gartelmann to confine his answer to the question being asked, rather than adding additional information.  

Sebastian described one proposition put to him about Day charging a commission on a payment for a performance for which he received a boat rather than cash as 'ludicrous'.  

Titus Day has pleaded not guilty to 50 charges of embezzlement as a clerk or servant, and 50 alternative counts of stealing. He managed Guy Sebastian for a decade before the pair split acrimoniously in late 2017

Mr Toomey suggested Sebastian was not being truthful about not having heard of two public relations companies he was supposedly paying for work in London.

'I don't recall either of those organisations,' Sebastian said, 'but just continue.'

Sebastian said he understood the seriousness of having gone to the police to make allegations that Day had failed to pay him fees he believed he was due.

'I absolutely appreciate the gravity of what you are saying,' Sebastian told Mr Toomey. 'I am not forensically skilled… when it comes to money and numbers it is pretty clearly not my forte.'

When Sebastian smiled after being asked again about the PR companies in London Mr Toomey said, 'You find this somehow amusing?'

'No, I find these documents amusing and what you're suggesting farfetched,' Sebastian replied. 'It's getting monotonous.'

When Sebastian laughed at another proposition and Mr Toomey asked again if he was amused, the witness said, 'I'm going to respond how I naturally respond Mr Toomey, not how you want me to respond.' 

 The ARIA-winner agreed he been involved in ambassadorships with Bose, AirAsia, Canon and Yamaha and accepted a Bluefin boat as payment for performing at a festival in Queensland

Mr Toomey has quizzed Sebastian about 'contra' payments, which involved receiving goods for his services rather than money.   

Asked if it was his position he never believed he was required to pay commission on contra deals to his manager, Sebastian said 'absolutely'.

The court heard Sebastian had an endorsement deal with Toyota worth $142,269.44, for which he and wife Jules were each given the use of a LandCruiser. 

Sebastian rejected the suggestion Day had made clear to him he would pay 20 per cent commission on that contra deal. 'That's a lie,' he said.

Mr Toomey: 'Did you seriously expect that contra to the value of in excess of $140,000 provided to you in payment for services provided by you as a performing artist would not attract any payment for your manager?'

Sebastian replied by saying some of what Day did for him required a 'heavy work load' but for other tasks he needed 'very little' assistance.

Day (left) and Sebastian (right) had worked together since 2007, four years after the singer won the first series of Australian Idol over Shannon Noll, another former Day client

Day's contribution to marketing Sebastian's song writing and television appearances was negligible. Day would 'hardly ever rock up' when he was a judge on The X Factor, for instance, 'but will take a $200,000 fee'.

Sebastian said he received two $82,500 payments from Bose totalling $165,000 plus an allowance of up to $50,000 in contra but he had not accepted goods worth that amount during the arrangement.

The singer did not accept financial statements which referred to 'comms' having been paid on contra to Day were valid.

'I do know Mr Day never told me he was going to commission on contra,' Sebastian said.

Mr Toomey put it to Sebastian that when he reported Day to police he knew his former manager had charged commissions on both cash and contra deals. 'Very false, Mr Toomey,' Sebastian responded.

Sebastian denied he felt 'great animosity' towards Day, saying he instead felt 'great disappointment' in his former agent.

'I have a lot of confusion as to now it's got to this point,' he said.

Sebastian has denied asking Day to use part of his $494,360 payment for supporting Taylor Swift on the Australian leg of her 2013 world tour to buy shares to avoid money going into his account. Swift is pictured 

Sebastian further denied he routinely rejected propositions or failed to accept the legitimacy of documents which might help Day's position.

'That's not the case,' he said. 'There's a long understanding and history to this and there's some very interesting documents being put towards me that I have strong objection to.'

Sebastian has repeatedly challenged the 'validity' of documents Mr Toomey has shown him during cross-examination, stating it was the first time he had seen some of them.

At one point he said, 'I've learnt to be very sceptical of what you're putting in front of me, Mr Toomey.' 

At another, Mr Toomey suggested to Sebastian he was 'earning a large sum of money' during his time under Day's management.

'Not as large as it should have been, Mr Toomey,' he said.   

Sebastian would not agree with Mr Toomey's suggestion Day's company 6 Degrees had been entitled to payment for a 'considerable contribution' to helping organising a charitable Christmas carols event in 2014.

'There's no basis for that suggestion,' Sebastian said. 'I do of course reject that suggestion.'         

The court has heard Sebastian had with various companies, including a 'lucrative' arrangement with Toyota, which the court has heard provided the singer and his wife Jules with two LandCruisers. Sebastian did not accept the Toyota deal was 'lucrative'

Sebastian has previously denied asking Day to use part of his $494,360 payment for supporting Taylor Swift on the Australian leg of her 2013 world tour to buy shares to avoid money going into his account.

'I couldn't disagree with that statement any more,' he told Mr Toomey last Thursday.

Mr Toomey then suggested Sebastian had sought to buy shares because he did not way to pay tax on his Swift earnings.

'Mr Toomey, that is possibly the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard,' Sebastian said.

Mr Toomey asked Sebastian if he considered 'contra' - to be income. 'I'm not sure,' the singer responded.

'It's not something I've ever thought about. I hire accountants who've been instructed to do everything by the book. You don't buy a dog and bark yourself.'

Guy Sebastian is a judge on The Voice Australia with (left to right) fellow singers Rita Ora, Keith Urban and Jessica Mauboy

Mr Toomey listed ambassadorships Sebastian had with various companies, including the arrangement with Toyota, which the lawyer called 'lucrative'.

'I wouldn't say it's a lucrative deal, as you describe it,' Sebastian said. 'I don't own the cars.'

Sebastian said he was unaware of the deal's worth and had not seen his contract with the car maker.

'If there's questions about tax you're more than welcome to ask my accountant,' Sebastian said.

Sebastian agreed he been involved in ambassadorships with Bose, AirAsia, Canon and Yamaha and accepted a Bluefin boat as payment for performing at a festival in Queensland.

'Sometimes I'm doing gigs and instead of payment there's an agreement for something else,' Sebastian told the court.

Sebastian has described chasing up the reconciliations for his performances and tours from around 2017 as difficult. He is pictured performing in 2016

He did not consider such 'contra' to be gifts but when asked whether he was liable to pay tax on the boat said, 'I'm not sure'.

Sebastian: 'I don't think about tax, Mr Toomey.'

Mr Toomey: 'Lucky you.'

Sebastian said he would have spoken to Day before accepting the boat in lieu of payment for the Queensland festival performance.

He could not recall if his agent had said he could charge $130,000 to $150,000 for the show, which was more than the boat was worth.

'I was going to purchase a boat anyway,' Sebastian told the court.

Mr Toomey suggested Sebastian had justified the boat arrangement by reasoning that after paying tax and his agent's commission the reward would be about the same as if he had been paid money.

'I can't remember that conversation but possibly,' Sebastian said.

Mr Toomey listed ambassadorships Sebastian had with various companies, including the arrangement with Toyota, which the lawyer called 'lucrative'. 'I wouldn't say it's a lucrative deal, as you describe it,' Sebastian said

Mr Toomey: 'You thought that you wouldn't have to declare the value of the boat as income and therefore would not have to pay tax on it.'

Sebastian: 'I wouldn't have been thinking in that way.'

When Mr Toomey asked Sebastian on Thursday if he had declared the value of the boat for taxation purposes Judge Gartelmann told him not to answer the question and the trial was adjourned for lunch.

After the break Judge Gartelmann told the jury he had intervened in Sebastian's questioning so a 'certain process' could be followed when 'questions of that kind are pursued'. 

On Monday, Judge Gartelmann told Sebastian, and the jury, that line of questioning was no longer being pursued. 

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