Hunt v Lemura

In Hunt v Lemura, the plaintiff, Hunt, sued the defendants, Lemura, for damages related to a motor accident. The dispute centered around the costs incurred by both parties in the litigation process, specifically regarding the timing of offers of compromise and the applicable jurisdictional limits for costs. The matter was heard in the Queensland District Court.

The court needed to decide whether the plaintiff should bear the defendants' costs from the date of the expiry of the first offer made under the Motor Accidents Insurance Act 1994 (Qld) or from the second offer made under the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999 (Qld). Additionally, the court had to determine whether the costs should be measured under the old jurisdictional limits or the new ones, given that the posting and filing dates fell on either side of the changes.

The court held that the plaintiff was not liable for the defendants' costs from the expiry of the first offer, as the second offer was superior. The court ruled that the costs should be assessed under the new jurisdictional limits, as the posting date fell within the new limits. The court ordered that the second defendant would pay the plaintiff's costs up to 28 October 2010, and the plaintiff would pay the second defendant's costs from 29 October 2010. The second defendant was also ordered to pay all statutory refunds from the judgment sum within 28 days of all clearances being received. Payment of the balance of the judgment sum was stayed until the parties resolved the issue of costs. Each party retained the right to apply on two clear business days' notice in writing.