Hosking v Ipex Software Services Pty Ltd (No 2)

The dispute in Hosking v Ipex Software Services Pty Ltd (No 2) involved the plaintiff, Hosking, who was seeking damages from the defendant, Ipex Software Services Pty Ltd, for breaches of contract. The case was heard in the Supreme Court of Victoria, with the primary focus on the assessment of interest on the damages awarded. The plaintiff argued that interest should be calculated from the date the proceedings were commenced, 27 March 1997, while the defendant argued for interest from the date the damages were assessed, 30 June 2002. The legal issues centred on the interpretation of section 60(1) of the Supreme Court Act 1986 and whether "good cause" existed to deviate from the standard practice of calculating interest from the date of the proceedings.

The court considered whether the principle of awarding interest from the date of the proceedings or from the date of assessment should apply, as per section 60(1) of the Supreme Court Act 1986. The key question was whether the defendant had demonstrated "good cause" to justify interest being calculated from the date of the damages assessment rather than from the date the proceedings began. The court examined the circumstances surrounding the delay in assessing the damages and whether this delay warranted a departure from the usual practice of awarding interest from the commencement of the proceeding.

In its reasoning, the court held that the general rule is that interest on damages should be calculated from the date the proceedings are commenced, as per section 60(1) of the Supreme Court Act 1986. The court found that the defendant had not provided any evidence of "good cause" to warrant a deviation from this rule. Consequently, the plaintiff was entitled to interest on the damages from the date the proceedings were commenced, 27 March 1997. The court's decision was grounded in the absence of any exceptional circumstances that would justify altering the standard practice of awarding interest from the date of the proceedings.

The final orders of the court confirmed that the plaintiff was entitled to interest on the damages from 27 March 1997, as per section 60(1) of the Supreme Court Act 1986. The defendant was not found to have demonstrated "good cause" for the interest to be calculated from the date of the damages assessment, 30 June 2002. The plaintiff was thus awarded interest from the date the proceedings were commenced, reflecting the court's interpretation of the statute and the lack of evidence to support a departure from the general rule.