Anderson on behalf of the Wulli Wulli People v State of Queensland (No 2)

In the case of Anderson on behalf of the Wulli Wulli People v State of Queensland (No 2), the Court was called upon to decide a matter concerning costs associated with a notice of motion, where the successful respondents sought payment of costs by the representative body, Queensland Sovereign Treaty Native Title Services (QSNTS). The applicants to the motion were three of the 15 individuals comprising the applicant to the Native Title Determination of the Wulli Wulli People, while the respondents to the motion were the remaining 12 individuals. The applicants to the motion sought an order regarding a Notice of Change of Service Address filed by Just Us Lawyers, which they argued was not authorised and should be removed by the Registrar.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether QSNTS, acting as legal representative for the applicants to the motion, was liable for the costs incurred by the respondents to the motion in responding to affidavits filed by QSNTS. The Court had to consider whether QSNTS was a "real" moving party in the litigation and whether the conduct of QSNTS was unreasonable or in dereliction of duty. The Court also needed to determine if the conduct of the applicants to the motion was unreasonable and whether the provisions of the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) were applicable to the circumstances.

The Court found that QSNTS was not a "real" moving party in the litigation, as it was acting as a legal representative for the applicants to the motion. The Court also found that QSNTS's conduct was not unreasonable or in dereliction of duty, and the applicants to the motion's conduct was not unreasonable either. The Court held that the provisions of the Native Title Act were not relevant to the circumstances of this case. Consequently, the interlocutory application filed by the respondents to the motion seeking costs from QSNTS was dismissed.