The partner of Stuart Rattle gets "quite distressed" when recalling how he killed the well-known Victorian interior designer, a court has been told.
Michael Anthony O'Neill, 48, has pleaded guilty to murdering Mr Rattle before setting fire to their South Yarra apartment last December.
Defence barrister Ruth Shann told the Victorian Supreme Court that O'Neill is undergoing psychological treatment.
"He has difficulty talking about aspects of these events and the relationship without becoming quite distressed," she said on Wednesday.
Documents tendered to the Melbourne Magistrates Court earlier this month reveal O'Neill bludgeoned Mr Rattle with a saucepan before strangling him with a dog leash.
O'Neill then made his dead partner a cup of tea, and continued to act as if nothing had happened for several days, according to a transcript of his police interview.
He then set fire to their apartment, initially telling police Mr Rattle had died in the blaze.
Justice Elizabeth Hollingworth remanded O'Neill in custody for a two-day pre-sentence hearing on December 15.
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