Pursuant to r 1725(3) of the Court Procedures Rules 2006, order 2 of the orders made on 26 July 2024 is varied to read as follows: The defendants are to pay 85% of the plaintiff’s costs.
Catchwords:
PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE – COSTS – where plaintiff successful in personal injury claim – where judgment sum awarded was less than the jurisdictional limit of the Magistrates Court – application of r 1725 of the Court Procedures Rules 2006 (ACT) – where plaintiff’s claim was complex but quantum of claim exaggerated – alternative costs order made – offers of compromise made under the Rules – Calderbank offers – where offers not accepted and judgment less favourable to plaintiff – where period of acceptance of offers was 4 days – offers not open for reasonable period under the Rules – not unreasonable for plaintiff to reject offer in the circumstances
[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.
[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.
[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.
Consideration
[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.
[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.
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AGLC
Marhaba v Chen (No 2) [2024] ACTSC 288
Case
[2024] ACTSC 288
Decision Date
CaseChat Overview and Summary
Marhaba v Chen (No 2) involved the plaintiff seeking to have the costs of a personal injury claim paid by the defendants. The original judgment awarded the plaintiff a sum less than the jurisdictional limit of the Magistrates Court. The court was tasked with determining the appropriate percentage of costs to be paid by the defendants under rule 1725 of the Court Procedures Rules 2006 (ACT). The plaintiff’s claim, while complex, had an exaggerated quantum, and despite the plaintiff's success, the final award was less favourable than a previous offer made by the defendants.
The legal issues before the court included the application of rule 1725 and the appropriateness of the alternative costs order, given the nature of the claim and the offers of compromise. The court considered whether the plaintiff had acted unreasonably in rejecting the defendants' offers and whether these offers were open for a reasonable period under the rules. The court found that the offers were not open for a reasonable period and it was not unreasonable for the plaintiff to reject the offers in the circumstances.
In its reasoning, the court noted the complexity of the claim and the exaggerated nature of the quantum. The court also found that the period within which the plaintiff could accept the offers was unreasonably short. Given these factors, the court varied the original order to reflect that the defendants were to pay 85% of the plaintiff's costs. This decision balanced the plaintiff's success with the need to consider the reasonableness of the costs awarded in light of the circumstances of the case.
Orders
Orders of the court
Pursuant to r 1725(3) of the Court Procedures Rules 2006, order 2 of the orders made on 26 July 2024 is varied to read as follows: The defendants are to pay 85% of the plaintiff’s costs.