Ferella v Stomo

The parties to this matter were Ferella and Stomo. The dispute concerned an appeal from a costs assessment to the District Court, brought by way of a summons for judicial review. The central question was whether the review panel had applied the incorrect legislation to the costs assessment.

The court was required to determine whether the primary judge had erred in finding that the *Legal Profession Act 2004* (NSW) applied to the costs assessment. This involved considering the transitional provisions governing the application of the *Legal Profession Act 2004* (NSW) and the *Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014* (NSW).

The court reasoned that the *Legal Profession Act 2004* (NSW) applies to costs relating to proceedings commenced before 1 July 2015, in accordance with Schedule 9 of the *Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014* (NSW). The court found that the application for judicial review was without merit and that there was no error of law in the primary judge’s reasoning.

The summons for judicial review was dismissed, with costs ordered to be paid on an indemnity basis.