Guest and Boehm

In *Guest and Boehm*, heard before Macmillan J, the dispute concerned the costs of a hearing that took place on 6 July 2017. The parties involved were the de facto husband and the de facto wife.

The central legal issue before the court was the basis upon which the costs of the aforementioned hearing should be awarded. Specifically, the court was required to determine whether the costs should be awarded on a standard basis or an indemnity basis.

Macmillan J ordered that the de facto husband pay the de facto wife’s costs of and incidental to the hearing on 6 July 2017. Crucially, these costs were to be awarded on an indemnity basis, and the sum was fixed at $5,000. This decision indicates that the court found circumstances warranting a higher level of cost recovery for the de facto wife.