A Canberra brothel owner has been found guilty of 20 sexual offences against seven sex workers, including rape and acts of indecency, during so-called "training sessions".

Key points: Bradley Lester Grey committed the offences during job interviews with sex workers "new to the industry"

Bradley Lester Grey committed the offences during job interviews with sex workers "new to the industry" Grey's lawyer said the women could have chosen to leave, and knew they were interviewing for a brothel

Grey's lawyer said the women could have chosen to leave, and knew they were interviewing for a brothel The jury today returned guilty verdicts to 20 of the 26 charges

The ACT Supreme Court heard Bradley Lester Grey, 54, conducted the sessions, which included massages, before the women had begun working for him.

The women told the court they had approached Grey looking for work after seeing ads on sites like Gumtree and Craigslist.

'This is a bit weird': Women did not expect training to involve sex

Prosecutor Trent Hickey said the women were all "young", "new to the industry" and "naive".

He said many were also in dire financial straits.

Mr Hickey recounted the evidence of one woman who said she became surprised when the initial interview, or training session, turned sexual.

"She said she thought, 'this is a bit weird, what type of interview is this?'" Mr Hickey said.

Grey denied the allegations he had sexually assaulted the women.

But Mr Hickey said he had misused his authority, and made a fraudulent representation about the training, both of which negated any consent.

He told the jury they needed to ask themselves if it had been a genuine attempt to train the sex workers.

"Or simply a sham for him to have sexual intercourse with them," he said.

Mr Hickey put the argument to the jury that Grey had "moved from new worker to new worker, molesting each".

"The training was not so much informative as exploitative," he said.

"No one wants to believe an employer would do that."

Defence argues women could have 'walked out the door'

Bradley Lester Grey is taken into a Canberra police station. ( Supplied: ACT Policing )

But Grey's lawyer Beth Morrisroe rejected the claims.

She urged the jury to think about the training and whether it could have been a legitimate effort aimed at preparing the women for the confronting experience of the first time they exchanged sexual services for money.

Ms Morrisroe also questioned the prosecution's suggestion there had been a fraudulent representation by Grey.

"I suggest not one of these women showed up at Mitchell Mistresses not knowing it was a brothel," she said.

She also played down the suggestion her client had misused his position, arguing that at the point of the allegations the women were only potential contractors, and they did not work for him.

Naivety on the part of these women does not equate to Brad having authority over them," she said.

"Each of these women could simply have walked out the door."

She also said there was no evidence he had made a fraudulent representation to the women.

"This is not some portion of the Me Too movement. This is not a current affairs show," she said.

She argued that it was instead a criminal court, and the charges had to be weighed as criminal charges, including as to whether they could be proved beyond reasonable doubt.

The jury today returned guilty verdicts to 20 of the 26 charges.

Grey is expected to be sentenced in December.

Editor's Note: In a statement from Gumtree, the company said some items, including sexual escort services, were prohibited for sale. Gumtree said the community marketplace relied on users' feedback to keep the site friendly, safe and relevant. The company said Gumtree would remove any reported ads that breached their policies.