Futurepower Developments Pty Ltd v TJ and RF Fordham Pty Ltd t/as TRN Group (No 2)

In the case of Futurepower Developments Pty Ltd v TJ and RF Fordham Pty Ltd t/as TRN Group (No 2), the dispute involved various legal issues pertaining to the payment of costs and interest on costs. The matter was ultimately decided in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The central legal issues in the case revolved around the exceptions to the general rule that costs follow the event. Specifically, the court had to determine whether the plaintiff, Futurepower Developments Pty Ltd, should have accepted a Calderbank offer made by the defendant, TJ and RF Fordham Pty Ltd t/as TRN Group, and whether interest on costs should be awarded in accordance with the form used in Lahoud v Lahoud and Leda Pty Ltd v Weerden (No 2). The court was required to consider the appropriateness of the defendant’s offer and the application for interest on costs, given the duration of the proceedings and the established legal principles.

The court found that the plaintiff, acting reasonably, should have accepted the defendant's Calderbank offer. The defendant had offered to drop its cross claim, valued at approximately $24,000, in return for the plaintiff agreeing to settle the proceedings and pay the defendant’s costs. This offer was made nearly two years before the case was finally determined, and the court concluded that accepting the offer would have been in the best interests of the plaintiff. The court also determined that the defendant was entitled to an order for interest on costs, aligning with the methodology established in Lahoud v Lahoud and Leda Pty Ltd v Weerden (No 2).

The final orders of the court were that the plaintiff should have accepted the defendant's Calderbank offer and that the defendant was entitled to interest on costs as per the established precedent.