Taxpayers are funding a multi-million dollar legal battle launched by a non-resident American musician who claims his life was shattered after he inhaled pesticide at the Academy for Performing Arts.
Legal Aid is covering the cost of Kristan Phillips' personal injury suit, which had soared to $20 million even before the High Court doors opened yesterday.
If, as expected, the trial runs until May, costs for Mr Phillips' side could run as high as $100 million, sources said.
Mr Phillips, 47, a former timpanist with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Society, hobbled into court on two canes. He is suing the academy and four companies after he inhaled the pesticide Diazinon on June 21, 1987.
The chemical left Mr Phillips with brain, neurological and cardiovascular damage and psychiatric problems, his lawyer, Daniel Brennan QC, said.
In court were 33 legal representatives, including five Queen's Counsel. The seats in the public gallery had to be removed to accommodate the files generated by the case.
Mr Phillips, who lives in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, was overcome by the pesticide while practising with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Society, the court heard.