Unicomb, of East Maitland's Michael Unicomb and Associates, was sentenced in Newcastle District Court on Wednesday for dishonestly gaining a financial advantage by submitting false information to Westpac Bank.

The 67-year-old, who is suffering a chronic medical condition that requires treatment every 36 hours, was placed under an intensive corrections order, which means his sentence will be served in the community under supervision from authorities and he will not go to jail.

Judge Roy Ellis adjourned the matter to April 27 to have Unicomb assessed for home detention.

He said Unicomb's age, medical condition and COVID-19 restrictions meant that if the accountant was jailed he would serve a harsher sentence than normal and "probably a harsher circumstances than the average inmate".

Judge Ellis said it was unclear if Westpac suffered any loss.

The court heard Unicomb submitted nine character references from associates, attesting to his good character.

These included Robert Herbert, a board member of the Gateway Church Pelican, Paul O'Rourke, a friend and former editor of the Newcastle Herald and Colin Davies a retired UK police officer.

Unicomb was a trusted advisor of self-funded retiree David Dixon, of Branxton, for six years to 2014.

Mr Dixon, who died in 2019, was introduced to Unicomb in 2008 after he sold a property in Western Sydney for $2.3 million and was looking for someone to manage his investment portfolio.

The retired draftsman retained Unicomb and was advised to purchase a 25-acre property in the Hunter Valley, at Lovedale, for $900,000, that Mr Dixon understood would eventually be developed into a tourist facility with up to 30 cabins.

According to the agreed statement of facts, Unicomb then advised Mr Dixon on a series of complicated changes to the ownership of the site - that involved a unit trust - which resulted in his wife, Pamela Unicomb, becoming a 50 per cent stakeholder in the site.

In September 2010, Unicomb advised Mr Dixon to expect delays in a "draft development application" for the property that he claimed was being prepared to increase the number of planned cabins from 15 to 30.

He then told Mr Dixon he could arrange a personal loan with Westpac to fund the cabin development.

Unicomb completed an application form for the $1.16 million loan, indicating the money would be used for the "purchase of the Lovedale property as a residence for Mr Dixon".

He also falsely told Westpac that Mr Dixon was working full-time as a senior engineer with ICA Group Lifestyle earning $285,200 a year, received $7083 from trust distributions each month, had $783,200 in super and owned 30 stud Arabian ponies valued at $250,000.

"The applicant represented that Dixon was paying rent at the Lovedale property having paid a deposit of $180,000 towards the purchase of the property which was valued at $1.8 million, which was not true...," an agreed statement of facts reads.

"Unicomb also submitted three forged payslips from Dixon from the ICA Group ... which he had instructed Albert Graves, an associate of his, to create."

The loan was drawn down in December 2010 and $141,535 was transferred to a company owned by Unicomb and his wife called Greenhills Securities.

A further $120,000 was paid to ICA (South Australia) and $120,000 to Vangory Holdings, companies operated by Gregory Huxley, an associate of Unicomb's.

In police interviews, Unicomb said ICA was involved in the development of the Lovedale property.

Police intercepts of phone conversations between Unicomb and Mr Huxley in April 2017, record the pair discussing the Westpac loan.

"I'd say I know of no payslips," Unicomb said. "And if they say, 'Well what about these payslips?' [laughs] 'First time I've seen them.'"

In response Mr Huxley said: "...the comment I think you can make, as an honest comment, I think is this - that there was a joint venture incentive. Dixon was to be paid in relation to that joint venture."

Unicomb pleaded not guilty to three charges and the Department of Public Prosecutions agreed to accept a single guilty verdict.

Unicomb's bail was continued and the matter adjourned to April 27.

In 2010, the Newcastle Herald reported that Unicomb was trying to stave off bankruptcy, hoping creditors owed more than $40 million would accept less than one cent in the dollar.

In a letter to creditors, insolvency firm McLeod and Associates listed 37 unsecured creditors allegedly owed nearly $45 million.

The letter stated that if creditors agreed to Mr Unicomb's proposed "personal insolvency agreement" a "third party", Mr Dixon, would provide $50,000 to be divided among creditors.

Mr Dixon was listed in the letter as an unsecured creditor, owed about $1 million.

Unicomb was trying to avoid being forced into bankruptcy so he could continue practising as an accountant.

Creditors who have spoke to the Newcastle Herald in 2010 complained that the amounts owed to them appeared to have been understated, possibly affecting their voting rights.

Unicomb listed family members and business associates among his creditors.

In 2008, the Newcastle Herald reported that an elderly Hunter dairy farming couple who used Unicomb as their accountant had been saved from losing their property and life savings by a NSW Supreme Court decision.

Judge Hamilton stated in a written decision that Dallas and Juliet Clarke, of Wallalong, had been led or pressured by Unicomb "into entering, for his own purposes, into two disadvantageous transactions" totalling more than $2 million with financiers.

The judge set aside mortgages and guarantees entered by the couple, declaring that Unicomb, "a long-standing and trusted adviser and personal friend", had abused the couple's trust.

A month later, the Herald reported on a different court matter where a judge accused Unicomb of abusing the trust of another client and leading them into bad transactions for his own purposes.

Suzanne Cairns, 47, of Gillieston Heights, told the Supreme Court her husband, Peter, had been unable to exercise normal judgement during his final months because of intense pain and strong medication he was taking for his terminal bowel cancer.

Three months before his death in March 2005 from complications related to his cancer, Mr Cairns borrowed $200,000 from a high-interest lender and authorised payment of funds to Unicomb's trust account.

The three-month loan from finance company Galadriel Lothlorien was not repaid in time and reverted to punitive interest rates.