Aydogan and Town Of Cambridge

The applicants, Aydogan, sought relief against the Town of Cambridge in a dispute before the State Administrative Tribunal of Western Australia. The primary issue was the applicants' failure to comply with previous orders, which necessitated a directions hearing. The respondents argued that this non-compliance caused them significant prejudice in preparing for the hearing, and they sought an order for the applicants to pay their costs associated with the directions hearing.

The legal issues before the tribunal included whether the applicants' non-compliance with prior orders justified the imposition of costs and, if so, the appropriate quantum of those costs. The tribunal examined whether the respondents could demonstrate actual prejudice as a result of the applicants' failure to comply and whether the applicants had provided a satisfactory explanation for their default. The tribunal concluded that the applicants had not provided an adequate explanation for their non-compliance and that the respondents had indeed suffered prejudice, warranting an order for costs.

Member James Jordan, who heard the application, found that the applicants' failure to comply with the tribunal's orders had caused significant prejudice to the respondents in their preparation for the directions hearing. The tribunal determined that the applicants' lack of a satisfactory explanation for their default warranted an order for costs. Accordingly, the tribunal ordered the applicants to pay the respondents' costs of the directions hearing in a fixed amount of $300, in accordance with section 87(2) of the State Administrative Tribunal Act 2004 (WA).