Livent co-founder Garth Drabinsky arrives at the Superior Court of Justice in Toronto last March 25. Drabinsky and business partner Myron Gottlieb have been found guilty of fraud and forgery related to the now defunct Toronto-based entertainment company. (Chris Young/Canadian Press)

The defence team for Garth Drabinsky asked a Toronto court for leniency at the sentencing hearing for the theatre impresario and his business partner who were found guilty of cooking the books at defunct Livent Inc.

On March 25, Drabinsky and Myron Gottlieb were convicted on fraud and forgery charges. Justice Mary Lou Benotto of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Toronto said they "systemically manipulated the books" at Livent.

The maximum possible penalty on a fraud conviction is 10 years in jail, while it's 14 years for a forgery conviction.

Crown attorney Alex Hrybinsky told the court Monday it was a serious crime and suggested that Drabinsky and Gottlieb should be given sentences of eight to 10 years.

While the Crown argued in court that neither man had shown remorse, Drabinsky's lawyer Edward Greenspan asked for a lenient sentence.

Drabinsky never profited personally from the fraud, Greenspan said. Unlike in some high profile cases, the impresario didn't take a salary of $10 million or $20 million, he said.

Greenspan said there wasn't a suggestion that Drabinsky bought "shower curtains," referring to former Tyco International Ltd. chief executive Dennis Kozlowski who spent $6,000 for the bathroom accessory.

Drabinsky never sold his stock in Livent and lost everything he invested when the company collapsed, and he has had to sell his art work to pay debts, Greenspan said.

Greenspan also read from more than 40 letters of support from family and friends, including actor Christopher Plummer, dancer Karen Kain and painter Alex Colville.

The sentencing hearing is anticipated to last two days, with the judge expected to deliver a decision at a later date.

Bilking investors

During the original trial, prosecutors maintained that Drabinsky and Gottlieb directed a scheme to make the ailing company look healthy, bilking investors of approximately $500 million.

Benotto said the two men created "spectacular" successes on the stage, productions which brought Toronto, the company's home base, kudos from the worldwide theatre community.

But, the judge said, those successes were built upon a platform of falsehoods and manipulation as Gottlieb and Drabinsky artificially inflated the company's profits and depressed its costs to make Livent's financial situation appear rosier than it was.