Australian pop star Guy Sebastian has brought an end to his long-running Federal Court dispute with former manager Titus Day, closing a legal saga that stretched across nearly a decade and encompassed a criminal conviction, an appeal, a retrial and years of financial acrimony.
In a statement released Wednesday, Day conceded that he had made what he called "regrettable decisions" during his time managing Sebastian's career, acknowledging the toll those choices took on both families. He also acknowledged that Sebastian had tried to settle the dispute years earlier, before the criminal proceedings began, on terms Day now says he should have accepted.
The two parties have entered into a confidential settlement agreement to close out the case. In his statement, Day acknowledged shortcomings in how he managed Sebastian's finances during the later years of their relationship and admitted that his company failed to properly account for and pass on payments owed to the singer, including money received after Sebastian left the company in 2017.
Sebastian said he never anticipated the scope of the legal fight that followed the breakdown of their relationship or its impact on those close to him. He said Day's acknowledgment of responsibility and apology were enough for him to put aside his civil claim, forgive his former manager and move forward.
The dispute traces back to the end of an eleven-and-a-half-year professional relationship that unraveled over money. Sebastian filed Federal Court proceedings in 2018, alleging that substantial royalties and performance income owed to him had not been paid. The fallout later expanded into criminal proceedings, with Day convicted in 2022 on 34 embezzlement counts and sentenced to four years in prison. Those convictions were overturned on appeal, and a new trial was ordered.
At the 2025 retrial, a jury acquitted Day on four counts but could not reach verdicts on the remaining 31. Prosecutors ultimately decided not to pursue a third trial, and the outstanding charges were dropped.
Sebastian rose to national prominence after winning the first season of Australian Idol in 2003 and has since built a career that includes multiple No. 1 albums and singles and seven ARIA Awards.
The confidential agreement ends Sebastian's remaining Federal Court claim against Day. The criminal proceedings concluded in 2025 after prosecutors declined to pursue another trial.
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