Lawyer X Nicola Gobbo selling Melbourne apartment
Barrister-turned-informer Nicola Gobbo is selling her bayside apartment in Melbourne while in hiding, as a verdict looms in her high-profile compensation suit against the Victorian government.
On Saturday, prospective buyers flocked to the first open house at the apartment, milling out onto its balconies to take in sweeping city and bay views – unaware the vendor was Melbourne's biggest supergrass.
Gobbo's life as a high-profile gangland barrister came crashing down in late 2018 when it was revealed she had also been secretly spying on her clients for police as 'Informer 3838' or 'Lawyer X' at the height of the underworld war. The scandal has rocked Victoria Police and caused a string of gangland figures to appeal their convictions, including most recently drug kingpin Tony Mokbel, now out on bail.
Gobbo's apartment was listed for sale this week – with a pricetag well in excess of $1 million – less than a month after she settled a lawsuit brought against her by one of her exonerated clients, gangland figure Faruk Orman. Orman had been seeking millions of dollars from his former lawyer over her secret role in his 2008 prosecution for murder, for which Orman spent 12 years in jail before being set free on appeal.
The settlement deal on the eve of the trial came as a relief to some underworld figures, who might have been forced to give evidence.
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Gobbo still owns a clutch of properties across Melbourne's south-east, though she does not live at any of them since going into hiding. Her name disappeared soon after from the land titles registry by a special police order, an unprecedented move that made her assets difficult to find in the years since, including for Orman's legal team.
Her name was recently reinstated, clearing the way for the sale of her properties, but Gobbo is now living under a new identity.
She is also suing the state herself for compensation, arguing police acted negligently when they 'groomed' her to become a source, putting her health and safety at risk. Her legal team expects a judgment on the case to be handed down in the coming weeks, but any potential payout for Gobbo has been capped at $1 million by special Victorian government legislation.
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