Havas Legal Pty Ltd v McKenzie

Havas Legal Pty Ltd, a law firm, initiated proceedings against its former employee, McKenzie, seeking a costs order and costs recovery. The case was heard in the Supreme Court of Victoria. The central dispute was the determination of costs and the subsequent review of that determination. The Review Panel had previously reviewed the costs assessment and concluded that the costs should be reduced.

The key legal issue before the court was whether the Supreme Court had the discretion to set aside or vary the judgment created by the filing of the costs certificate after the Review Panel's decision. Havas Legal argued that the court had such discretion, while McKenzie contended that the Review Panel's decision was final and binding. The court needed to determine if the Review Panel's decision could be challenged further.

The Supreme Court held that the Review Panel's decision was not binding and that the court retained its discretion to review and vary the costs order. The court found that the Review Panel's role was to review the reasonableness of the costs, not to make a final determination. Therefore, the Supreme Court could still exercise its discretion to set aside or vary the judgment as it saw fit. The court concluded that the Review Panel's decision did not preclude the court from exercising its inherent jurisdiction to review and adjust the costs order if necessary. The court made orders in favour of Havas Legal, allowing it to recover costs from McKenzie in accordance with the revised assessment.