problems paying his employees, a Supreme Court jury heard yesterday.

Edward King, who worked at Vaucrosson's chambers as a lawyer before becoming a Magistrate, said he was owed more than $25,000 by the time he left the chambers in October, 1992.

He said he was subsequently paid the $29,400 he was owed because he made it clear to Vaucrosson before he left that he wanted his money.

King said employees were paid every Thursday and this situation continued until around April or May, 1991.

After that, the lawyers who worked at the firm were not paid on a weekly basis.

"I did not get my cheque for May 16, 1991 until June 1991,'' King said. "By September, 1991 I was due three and a half months wages. There were occasions when I would get a cheque for a month that had long gone by.

"At the end of December, 1991 I was owed 14 weeks salary.'' King said that this situation continued into 1992 and by May, 1992 he wrote a letter to Vaucrosson and told him that he had borne enough financially.

"I said I would terminate my services on September 1, 1992 unless all arrears were paid to me.'' King said he was due to go on vacation around August, 1992 and he told Vaucrosson he needed money to go away.

On the day he was supposed to leave he said he had to wait for Vaucrosson at his office and he (Vaucrosson) arrived at midday and gave him a cheque for $2,400 which was two week's wages.

"I was owed close to 24 weeks pay at this time,'' King added.

During his subsequent holiday, King said that Vaucrosson paid $1,200 to his wife.

"When I returned to Bermuda in August,'' King continued, "Mr. Vaucrosson was on holiday. When September 1 came (the date he set to resign from the firm) he had not returned. In fairness to him, I stayed on.'' King said that when Vaucrosson came back to work around September 13, 1992 he had a staff meeting and told everyone that he was going back to a sole operator from December 13, 1992 and gave them all notice to find other jobs.

Meanwhile, King said that he had a sour relationship with Stephen Gibbons who was once employed as the financial controller at Vaucrosson's.

King said that when he started working for Vaucrosson's in 1987 he developed a close relationship with the accused, who said he wanted to make him a partner after he had worked with the firm for three years.

This information he said got back to Gibbons who did not want to see it happen.

King said he was invited to a meeting by Julian Hall who was another associate. He said Hall was trying to take over the litigation end of the business, leaving Vaucrosson with only the civil and conveyancing sections.

"I did not want to be a part of that,'' King said.

Appleby, Spurling & Kempe lawyer Geoffrey Bell, who also gave evidence yesterday, said that Vaucrosson told him that all of Percy Ball's trust money was gone when they met on April 26, 1993.

"I told Vaucrosson that I was concerned about the consequences of what he just told me,'' Bell recalled. "That was a piece of information that was not sensible for him to tell me and I felt that he should take legal advice.

"He said that because of his financial situation it was impossible for him to pay for legal advice.'' The trial goes into its second week on Monday. The Crown allege that Vaucrosson abused his position as the administrator of Ball's estate and spent close to $400,000 of the money to pay off his own debts.

Vaucrosson lives on North Shore Road, Pembroke. He is accused of stealing more than $300,000 from the beneficiaries of Ball's trust fund. Ball was a journalist at the Bermuda Broadcasting Company.

The trial involves nine charges. The first eight relate to Vaucrosson acting for Ball's estate between an unknown time and February 1 and March 1, 1991.

It is alleged that he stole money -- ranging in amounts from $9,000 to $151,750 from the beneficiaries of the estate.

And the ninth charge alleges that he fraudulently disposed of the trust property -- some $393,782.58 -- and committed it to uses other than those authorised by the trust.

Jamaican Queen's Counsel Mr. Frank Phipps, Ms Patricia Harvey and Mr. Michael Scott appear for Vaucrosson.

Crown Counsel Mr. Michael Pert is assisted by Mr. James Candlin. Acting Chief Justice Mrs. Justice Wade is presiding.