Hung v Aquamore Credit Equity Pty Ltd

The appeal concerned a notice of motion filed by the respondents seeking security for costs against the appellants, who were two natural persons and one corporate entity. The dispute arose in the context of an appeal, where the respondents argued that the appellants, particularly the corporate appellant, lacked sufficient financial resources to meet potential adverse costs orders. The matter was heard by Leeming JA in the Court of Appeal of New South Wales.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the discretion to order security for costs differed between the natural person appellants and the corporate appellant, given their identical interests in the appeal. A further issue was whether a grossly inflated estimate of the respondents' costs, if otherwise a proper case for security, should disentitle the respondents from obtaining an order for security.

Leeming JA reasoned that the interests of the natural person appellants were identical with those of the corporate appellant. In the absence of special circumstances, the Court's discretion to order security for costs should not differ between the appellants. His Honour found that the respondents' estimate of their costs was grossly inflated, and that this inflation was so significant as to disentitle the respondents from obtaining an order for security for costs, even if the circumstances otherwise warranted it.

Consequently, the notice of motion filed by the respondents on 6 May 2022 was dismissed with costs.