AA v Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle (No 3)

In the case of AA v Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle (No 3), the plaintiff, AA, brought a claim against the defendants, the Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, alleging abuse during his time at a Catholic-run boarding school. The case was before the court on the issue of indemnity costs, specifically whether the time allowed for the acceptance of a Calderbank offer was reasonable in the circumstances. The defendants had made a conditional offer to settle the claims, which was open for acceptance for a very short period.

The court was required to determine whether the defendants' refusal to accept the offer within the limited timeframe was unreasonable, and if so, whether this would warrant an order for indemnity costs. The central issue was whether the defendants' conduct in not accepting the offer within the brief window provided was unreasonable, and if the plaintiff's costs should be paid on an indemnity basis as a result. The court also needed to consider the factors that should be taken into account when assessing the reasonableness of the time allowed for the acceptance of such an offer.

In its decision, the court found that the period given for the acceptance of the offer was unreasonably short, but this did not render the defendants' conduct unreasonable. The court held that there were significant public policy considerations involved in the making and acceptance of such offers, which meant that the time allowed for acceptance did not need to be ideal. The court emphasised that the reasonableness of the defendants' conduct was to be assessed in the context of the particular circumstances of the case, including the public policy considerations at play. As a result, the court refused the plaintiff's application for indemnity costs.