Lacey and Lacey (No.4)

[2019] FCCA 1138

FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA

LACEY & LACEY (No.4) [2019] FCCA 1138

Catchwords:
FAMILY LAW – Costs – Wife seeking costs arising out of a long running property settlement application.

Legislation:

Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), s.117

Federal Circuit Court Rules, r.21

Cases Cited:

Lad & Gittins (2014) 52 FamLR 71
Lacey & Lacey (No.3) [2018] FCCA 1551
Penfold & Penfold (1980) HCA 4

Applicant: MS LACEY

Respondent: MR LACEY

File Number: NCC 1128 of 2011

Judgment of: Judge Terry

Hearing date: 16 April 2019

Date of Last Submission: 16 April 2019

Delivered at: Tamworth

Delivered on: 10 May 2019

REPRESENTATION

Counsel for the Applicant: Mr Boyd

Solicitor for the Applicant:  Bell & Johnson Solicitors

Solicitor Advocate for the Respondent: Mr Hargreaves

Solicitor for the Respondent:  Palmers Solicitors

ORDERS

1. The husband shall within 28 days pay to the wife the sum of $17,212.00 made up of:

   (i)$13,970.00 being the husband’s share of certain valuation fees.

   (ii)$3,242.00 being the reserved costs of the interim proceedings determined on 21 April 2016.

2. The wife’s application for costs contained in the Application in a Case filed on 2 November 2018 is otherwise dismissed.

IT IS NOTED that publication of this judgment under the pseudonym Lacey & Lacey (No.4) is approved pursuant to s.121(9)(g) of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth).

FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT
OF AUSTRALIA
AT TAMWORTH

NCC 1128 of 2011

MS LACEY

Applicant

And

MR LACEY

Respondent

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

Introduction

1. Ms Lacey and Mr Lacey were involved in protracted property settlement proceedings which began in May 2011 and ended when I handed down a decision on 5 October 2018.

2. I found that the property pool was worth $10,438,803.20 and ordered that the wife receive $4,316,141.28. After taking into account amounts the wife had already received by way of partial property settlement she was entitled to a further $2,980,639.00.

3. On 2 November 2018 the wife filed an application in a case seeking the following order:

   That the Husband pay the Wife’s costs of and incidental to the proceedings as assessed in accordance with the Family Law Scale (noting that the costs order of 11 July 2016 has been satisfied).

4. At the end of the written submissions he filed for the hearing of the costs application the wife’s counsel amended this proposal and said that he sought the following order:

   That the husband shall pay the wife within 56 days of being served the assessment of the wife’s costs, such costs to be assessed from 10 October 2011, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

5. The wife’s counsel said that the wife’s costs to the end of the trial were $407,009.00 and that “most, if not all, of those costs should not have been borne by the wife.”

6. That last submission raises the spectre of the wife seeking indemnity costs.

7. The husband filed a response on 10 December 2018 seeking to have the wife’s application dismissed.

8. The husband’s solicitor said however that “if the threshold was crossed” and the court determined that the…