Cassaniti v Katavic (No 3)

In *Cassaniti v Katavic (No 3)*, the Court of Appeal of New South Wales considered an application for leave to appeal and the subsequent appeal proceedings concerning the apportionment of costs. The dispute arose from a mixed outcome on appeal, where the appellants were successful in part, leading to complex questions regarding the allocation of legal expenses between the parties.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was how to apportion costs when an appeal resulted in a partial success for the appellants. Specifically, the Court had to determine whether a single set of costs should be ordered or if separate orders were more appropriate, particularly given the lack of commonality between the parties who were successful in different aspects of the appeal and those who were unsuccessful.

The Court reasoned that a detailed apportionment was necessary due to the distinct interests involved in the successful and unsuccessful parts of the appeal. The orders reflected this, with the first respondent, Mr Katavic, being ordered to pay one-third of the appellants’ costs of the appeal. Conversely, the second appellant, Ms Morvillo, was ordered to pay 50 per cent of the first and second respondents’ costs of the appeal. Further orders addressed the costs of the summons seeking leave to appeal, the notice of motion filed on 5 October 2022, and the argument as to costs, with most of these resulting in no order as to costs, meaning each party was to bear their own.