An Australian sovereign citizen who once refused to speak in court unless addressed as ‘Man Living in Body’ is at risk of losing his inheritance in a fresh legal showdown.
The man, formerly known as Gregory Norman Francis, 56, is being brought before the Supreme Court of Victoria by the trustees of a family trust which claim his antics are delaying the winding-up of his late mother’s estate.
Court documents filed on Christmas Eve revealed that Mr Francis, who now insists on his bizarre ‘Man Living in Body’ title, settled a family provision claim against the estate of Sonja Heide Maria Francis in February 2023.
The confidential deal entitled him to a capital distribution from the Geson Trust, including the transfer of a lakeside property in the quiet Victorian township of Waranga Shores in the state’s north.
But almost three years later, the trustees claim ‘Man’ is refusing to provide essential tax information, including his legal name for Australian Taxation Office purposes, tax file number, date of birth, address and copies of his latest tax return.
The information is required to properly allocate the distribution for tax purposes and finalise the trust’s obligations.
‘Man’ stands to lose a substantial portion of his inheritance if the matter proceeds to court as expected.
Trustee Geson Pty Ltd accused ‘Man’ of breaching the settlement by failing to ‘do all things necessary’ to give effect to the deal.
A man who used to go by the name Gregory Norman Francis is facing another court date
The trustee wants the court to order ‘Man’ to hand over the details by a set deadline.
If he complies, the trustee can pay any remaining funds to the court and walk away.
But if ‘Man’ digs in as expected, the trustees are seeking drastic orders making ‘Man’ personally liable for any capital gains tax, stamp duty or other costs related to the property transfer.
The company also wants permission to wind up the trust regardless, and recover its legal costs on an indemnity basis, deducted from whatever payout remains.
‘Man’ has a long history of sovereign citizen stunts dating back years.
In 2014 he appeared barefoot in the Geelong Magistrates’ Court over unpaid fines and proceeded to cause mayhem.
When asked by Magistrate John Lesser if he was Gregory Francis, he replied: ‘My mum told me never to talk to strangers, what is your name?’
Mr Lesser repeated the question, to which ‘Man’ replied: ‘My title is Man.’
At stake is a lakeside property in the quiet Victorian township of Waranga Shores
On August 26, sovereign citizen Dezi Freeman allegedly murdered Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart. He remains at large
In 2017 he upset County Court of Victoria Judge Geoffrey Chettle over allegations of criminal damage and charges that were eventually dropped.
In a series of bizarre exchanges, ‘Man’ argued with the court over its continued reference to him as Greg Francis.
‘My salutation is Man. Stop calling me Mr,’ he said.
‘I am not, never have been and not consented to jurisdiction to me being here today … I am a man living in body.’
‘Man’ was accused of threatening to cut a policeman’s throat a year earlier during a mental breakdown.
The court heard he had asked police to shoot him and had been ‘acting like a pirate’.
A frustrated Judge Chettle urged Crown Prosecutor Neill Hutton to reconsider the case, suggesting the Director of Public Prosecutions may have better matters to pursue.
‘I would much rather be out fishing,’ he told ‘Man’.
‘And I would much rather be watering my garden,’ ‘Man’ said.
Gregory Norman Francis aka Man Living In Body, is refusing to hand over his tax details
Sovereign citizens – also known as ‘freemen on the land’ – believe they can opt out of government laws, taxes and court authority by rejecting their ‘legal person’ and declaring themselves a ‘living man’ or ‘living woman’.
Australian courts have repeatedly slammed such arguments as ‘pseudolegal nonsense’ and ‘gibberish’.
On August 26, sovereign citizen Dezi Freeman allegedly murdered Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart.
He remains at large.
Legal sources say ‘Man’s’ non-cooperation is almost certain to backfire, potentially leaving him with a hefty tax bill and little to show for his legal battle.
In 2017, ‘Man’ claimed the government had already acknowledged his ‘true name’, issuing him with a Miner’s Right, MasterCard and Medicare card under the name.
He further claimed Centrelink had also acknowledged his preferred name.
Daily Mail could not make contact with him.
Messages to lawyers acting for Geson Pty Ltd were not answered.