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One of Australia's richest men and his glamorous lawyer will celebrate the birth of their baby at a beachside mansion despite an ongoing courtroom battle with a cosmetics entrepreneur.
Richard White, 69, who is worth an estimated $9.7 billion, is expected to welcome the new arrival on Saturday along with former criminal defense lawyer Zena Nasser, 43, at his sprawling Palm Beach mansion on the northern beaches Sydney.
Mr. White is the CEO and founder of WiseTech Global, a leading software company specializing in logistics solutions.
He welcomed a child with Ms. Nasser via surrogate in July.
The billionaire heir is the second child of Ms. Nasser, who has a teenage daughter, and Mr. White has adult children from a previous marriage.
A who's who of Sydney socialites will attend the shower amid rumors the event will also be a wedding, after the pair quietly tied the knot in recent weeks.
The guest list includes Anthony Bell's future wife Eleni Taylor, Kate Champion who is the ex-wife of Laser Clinics Australia founder Alistair Champion, Litsa Stavropoulos, Real Housewives of Sydney cast member Victoria Montano and Sentosa designs founder Amanda Lennon, Daily Telegraph reports.
The happy occasion comes despite an ongoing legal dispute with Mr White's former lover, beauty entrepreneur Linda Rogan, in a Sydney courtroom.
Billionaire Richard White and former lawyer Zena Nasser (pictured together) will throw a lavish baby shower at Palm Beach on Sydney's northern beaches on Saturday
The happy occasion comes despite an ongoing legal dispute playing out in a Sydney courtroom with Mr White's former lover, Linda Rogan, a beauty entrepreneur (pictured)
Ms Rogan (55) owns a laser clinic in Double Bay, Sydney's eastern suburbs, and in Cairns and New Zealand.
The dispute escalated into bankruptcy proceedings against Ms. Rogan, and White's lawyers asked to suppress key documents in the case.
Bankruptcy proceedings were opened following a long-running local court case between two luxury pieces of furniture worth more than $90,000 purchased for a $13.1 million mansion in Vaucluse on the harbor.
Ms Rogan maintains that Mr White secretly purchased the property for her and her three children at auction in September 2022 and then instructed her to buy furniture for the home.
Sources close to Ms Rogan said Mr White's girlfriend was “furious” when she discovered his relationship with the laser clinic owner had been sexual at one point.
According to Ms Rogan, she was asked to hand over the keys to the house in November. It sold in February last year for $11.5 million.
White denied Ms Rogan's allegations about their relationship and the house and that he had instructed her to buy the furniture.
“I intend to defend the claim because I never entered into an agreement with the plaintiff (Ms. Rogan) regarding the furniture … and I never directed her to purchase furniture or use design services,” White stated, according to court documents.
