Judge prompts Stuart MacGill to hire a lawyer for his battle against Cricket Australia

Former Australian leg-spinner Stuart MacGill faces a complex situation in his legal feud with Cricket Australia, where he cannot find the means to hire a legal representative to take up his case. As a result, the judge advised him to engage a lawyer or else he faces a standing trial in his $2.6 million injury case against his once employers.

Earlier, MacGill sued Cricket Australia for a whopping sum of 1.6 million dollars for financial payments owed to him due to various injuries after he hung up his boots in May 2008 due to various injuries. MacGill also appealed for an additional amount of 1 million dollars in interest due to the costs accrued.

Due to financial muddle, Stuart MacGill was forced to represent himself in Monday’s directions hearing in the Victorian Supreme Court before Justice Michael McDonald. Visibly nervous, MacGill stuttered and fumbled with his words, failing to put forward his arguments for his claims convincingly.

MacGill’s claim was “really a debt claim not a damages claim.”

In the writ filed by the former WACA and New South Wales player in 2015, MacGill stated that he had sustained various injuries such as numbness in his hands and wrists, swelling and pain in one of his knees and a rotator cuff shoulder injury which went on to terminate his cricketing career.

“I’m not representing myself because I have to but now I just have to try to work out … if the numbers stack up.” said Stuart MacGill according to Cricbuzz. “I would urge you, Mr MacGill, too, even if you’re engaging lawyers just simply for the purposes of a mediation, I think it would be a very sensible thing for you to do,” advised Justice Michael McDonald.

CA was keen for mediation, but in case MacGill does not get a solicitor, then the case will be taken to private mediation and would not involve the court. CA lawyer Ben Ihle was of the view that MacGill’s claim was “really a debt claim not a damages claim.” The board does not dispute the fact that MacGill’s injuries were cricket-related, but claimed that the leggie did not honour his contractual obligations and that’s why he wasn’t eligible for injury payments.