The mentally ill widow from whom a Bermudian lawyer is alleged to have stolen more than $500,000, said several times that she did not want the lawyer to represent her, her housekeeper told the Supreme Court yesterday.

Julian Ernest Sinclair Hall is being tried on five counts of stealing a total of $551,044 from Betty Lorraine McMahon between 1995 and 1996.

Hall, a former MP and Shadow Minister of the Environment, was officially declared bankrupt and banned from practising law in January 2000.

He was ordered in December 1997, to pay Mrs. McMahon, $1.6 million plus seven percent interest. As legal proceedings dragged on, he was charged with stealing from the woman. He has denied those charges.

The case is being heard by Chief Justice Richard Ground and prosecuted by consultant counsel to Department of Public Prosecution's office Kulandra Ratneser. Hall is representing himself.

Mrs. McMahon is not considered fit to be a witness in the case.

Mrs. McMahon's paid companion, Cathleen Finkenstaedt took the stand yesterday and described Mrs. McMahon's mental state.

She told Senior Counsel Carrington Mahoney that her charge, Mrs. McMahon would often do things because "voices told her to", including escaping from the house in a state of undress.

"In 1995 she never could initiate a conversation," Mrs. Finkenstaedt said. "But she could follow one."

Mrs. Finkenstaedt described a rough relationship between Mrs. McMahon and her younger daughter Bettina. Bettina McMahon and her older sister Francine Ryan live in the United States.

Mrs. Finkenstaedt backed earlier witnesses claim that Bettina McMahon was addicted to drugs.

Mrs. Finkenstaedt said in the summer of 1995 she was on vacation in the Adirondack Mountains in New York State when she was suddenly called home by Sharon Lamb, the trust manager who handled Mrs. McMahon's affairs for Butterfield Executor Trustee Company (BETCO), because Bettina McMahon had arrived on the Island and was staying at the Coral Beach Club.

"I took Mrs. McMahon to the Coral Beach Club because Bettina asked me to," said Mrs. Finkenstaedt. "Bettina spoke to her mother."

"Was there reference to Julian Hall?"

Mrs. Finkenstaedt said: "To my recollection she said she already had a lawyer, John Campbell."

Mr. Campbell was then Mrs. McMahon's representative and a senior partner at Appleby Spurling & Kempe. Much of the testimony so far has revolved around whether Mrs. McMahon voluntarily changed her lawyer to Hall or was somehow unduly influenced or coerced to do so.

"For a period of time the subject would come up because Bettina was then at the house all the time," said Mrs. Finkenstaedt. "She said, 'I don't want Julian Hall. I have John Campbell'. This was within a two and a half month period."

Hall is alleged to have transferred several sums of money from Mrs. McMahon's bank account to accounts belonging to several companies belonging to himself. The largest sum was $250,000.

Mrs. Finkenstaedt said that when she opened Mrs. McMahon's bank statements she was alarmed to see large sums subtracted from Mrs. McMahon's account.

"I called Julian Hall and said I was concerned about it," said Mrs. Finkenstaedt. "I asked for an explanation."

Mrs. McMahon's companion said Hall told her it was because of Bettina McMahon.

"He was trying to get help for her," she said. "He was moving money around because it was a very chaotic situation."

However under cross examination by Hall, Mrs. Finkenstaedt admitted a friendship between her and Hall that developed because they both worked for the same family.

"You introduced me to St. John's Wort," Hall said.

When Hall was finally dismissed in 1996, Mrs. Finkenstaedt actually signed an affidavit in Hall's favour.

"He said he had been unfairly dismissed," Mrs. Finkenstaedt told the jury. "He said a deposition from me would be very helpful. I did give him the deposition [affidavit. Julian Hall and I did it over the telephone. A day or two later I went to Delroy Duncan's office and signed it."

Hall said he had tried to follow Mrs. McMahon's directives that her daughters be treated equally when it came to financial matters.

"Did you not also say that this made Mrs. McMahon extremely happy?" he asked the witness.

"I don't recall, but anytime anyone said anything good about her girls or said they were going to get something, it made her happy," said Mrs. Finkenstaedt.

"To the naked truth, I worked long and hard for that family to to sort out their problems," said Hall.

"As far as I know, yes," answered Mrs. Finkenstaedt.