Markets 
Veteran artist and sports manager Ralph Carr, a convicted rapist, financially re-engineered key assets in his co-owned $16 million-plus property portfolio as his trial unfolded in July.
Financial documents seen by this masthead reveal a series of new mortgages and the transfer of administrative control of four multimillion-dollar properties from Carr, or companies associated with him, to a Melbourne law firm, McKean Park Lawyers, as his three-week rape trial drew to a close.
McKean Park provides “practical and caring advice for wills and powers of attorney, trust creation and taxation issues”.
“We also advise on corporate and family succession planning, ensuring the ongoing viability of your business,” its website says.
Carr, a twice-married father of three, was last week found guilty of raping his 23-year-old personal assistant in 2023. His identity had been kept secret for almost three years until a controversial suppression order was lifted on Monday.
Over his decades as a prominent talent manager, Carr has amassed a portfolio of inner-Melbourne property. Some of the real estate is owned by Carr himself, while some is co-owned variously with his key client, former AFL superstar player Dustin Martin, and millionaire Melbourne businessman Chris Bissiotis.
Martin said on Monday he would immediately sever ties with Carr following his rape conviction.
“I was shocked to learn of the outcome of the court proceedings,” Martin said in a statement. “I had no knowledge whatsoever of the conduct that led to these convictions.
“My thoughts are with those affected. Effective immediately, I have ended my professional relationship with my former manager.”
But the ties that bind Martin to Carr will not be so easily cut, with the pair deeply intertwined when it comes to investments and business interests.
Records seen by this masthead reveal Carr and Martin own at least four properties together, including a series of three warehouses on Butler Street in Richmond, one of which is fully renovated.
They also own a now-for-sale historic commercial building in Abbotsford that is returning more than $150,000 a year in rent.
In his own name, Carr owns a converted warehouse in West Melbourne, which he bought for $4.1 million in 2021, and where he lived before being taken into custody following his guilty verdict.
In the week before that judgment was handed down, a fresh mortgage was listed on the property with Australian Executor Trustees, with effective administrative control of the property changed to McKean Park Lawyers.
Carr also owns a renovated office building on Lennox Street in Richmond. He bought this 30 years ago for $880,000 via a company he controls, but in late July a new mortgage was also listed in the property held by Australian Executor Trustees, with McKean Park again listed.
Director of Hillhouse Legal Partners Robert Lamb, who has had nothing to do with Carr nor his assets, told this masthead that a living trust was an effective way for an individual to protect their assets from creditors and legal action.
“If you are getting sued and then if you get a judgment against you, that trust is not considered part of your assets,” said Lamb, who runs the firm’s litigation and wills and estates teams. “You will have some asset protection.”
Lamb said that while trusts would be unlikely to protect assets in family law proceedings and had some tax disadvantages, he said establishing a trust structure was a straightforward process. “Any decent lawyer, accountant or financial planner can do it,” he said.
Carr co-owns with Bissiotis two other multimillion-dollar renovated warehouse and office complexes, one on Lincoln Street in Richmond and another on Ireland Street in West Melbourne. Together, the properties cost almost $7 million. In July, a fresh mortgage was listed on the West Melbourne property, with McKean Park listed as the new controller on both properties.
Bissiotis, who is overseas for an extended period, was contacted for comment on the future of his business relationship with Carr.
McKean Park Lawyers was also contacted for comment.
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