Law Society of Tasmania v Richardson (No 2)

The Law Society of Tasmania brought proceedings against Mr Richardson, a legal practitioner, seeking his removal from the roll of legal practitioners. The Law Society alleged misconduct on the part of Mr Richardson. The case came before the Federal Court of Australia, where the Law Society's application was dismissed. The Law Society then applied for costs on an indemnity basis, arguing that the application had been brought without reasonable cause and without merit. Mr Richardson, in turn, sought an order that the costs of the proceedings be paid on a solicitor and client basis. The court considered the principles applicable to costs orders, including the general rule that costs follow the event. The court found that the Law Society's application was not entirely without merit, but was not brought with reasonable cause. The court held that the application did not constitute a special case warranting a costs order on a solicitor and client basis. The court ordered that costs of the proceedings be paid on an indemnity basis, but reduced the amount claimed by the Law Society. The court found that the costs should be reduced by 10% due to the partial success of the Law Society's application.