Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited v Zipevski (No 2)

The case of Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited v Zipevski (No 2) involved a dispute between the plaintiffs, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, and the defendant, Zipevski. The plaintiffs sought an order for indemnity costs against the defendant as stipulated in agreements between the parties. The case was heard in the Supreme Court of Victoria.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the plaintiffs were entitled to an order for indemnity costs against the defendant. The agreements between the parties provided that the lender was entitled to indemnity costs in relation to enforcement of its rights against the borrower. The court had to determine whether any discretionary reason existed to depart from the agreement of the parties. The court considered whether there were any exceptional circumstances that would warrant a departure from the agreement of the parties.

The court held that there were no discretionary reasons to depart from the agreement of the parties. The court found that the agreements between the parties were clear and unambiguous, and that there were no exceptional circumstances that would warrant a departure from the agreement. The court ordered that the defendant pay the plaintiffs' costs of the proceedings on an indemnity basis. The court also ordered that judgment be entered for the first plaintiff against the defendant in the amount of $616,600.40 inclusive of pre-judgment interest to 29 March 2018. The court varied the order made on 20 March 2018 to reflect this decision.