Liatos & Silid

In proceedings before Barry J of the Family Court, the Respondent sought to restrain the Applicant Wife's solicitor from acting and to transfer the proceedings to the Supreme Court. The dispute also involved an application for an extension of time to file a notice disputing costs, and the assessment of those costs.

The court was required to determine whether the Applicant Wife's solicitor should be disqualified from acting due to a previous personal relationship between the Respondent and the solicitor. Additionally, the court had to consider the merits of transferring the proceedings to the Supreme Court, and whether to grant an extension of time for the Applicant to dispute the solicitor's costs, and how those costs should be assessed.

Barry J dismissed the application to restrain the solicitor, finding no basis for disqualification. The application to transfer the proceedings to the Supreme Court was also dismissed, with the court deeming it preferable for a Family Court Registrar to assess the Family Court costs. The court allowed an extension of time for the Applicant to file a notice disputing the itemised costs, as the justice of the case demanded it. The assessment of costs was stayed pending the determination of the validity of a costs agreement in the Supreme Court. The court ordered the Respondent to deliver itemised and numbered accounts of fees within twenty-eight days of the Supreme Court's decision, and extended the time for the Applicant to serve a notice disputing these costs by twenty-one days from delivery. The proceedings were to be relisted for assessment by a Registrar after these steps were completed. Costs of the current proceedings were reserved.