Meimaropoulos v Cheum (No. 2)

The case of Meimaropoulos v Cheum (No. 2) involved a dispute between the plaintiff, Meimaropoulos, and the defendants, Cheum. The plaintiff brought an action against the defendants, and the defendants sought costs in relation to several interlocutory proceedings and hearings. The plaintiff had previously vacated certain hearing dates, leading to the dismissal of a motion and the vacating of costs from an earlier hearing. The defendants sought an order for costs following the event, in accordance with UCPR r 42.35, and argued that the plaintiff should pay a proportion of their costs under s 98 of the Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW).

The court considered whether an order for costs following the event should be refused, and whether the plaintiff should pay a proportion of the defendants' costs. The court found that the plaintiff's decision to vacate certain hearing dates was unreasonable and had resulted in the dismissal of a motion. The court also found that the plaintiff should pay a proportion of the defendants' costs, as the plaintiff had acted unreasonably in relation to the interlocutory proceedings. The court noted that the costs payable by the plaintiff to the defendants should be set off against the judgment sum payable by the defendants to the plaintiff.

The court ordered that the plaintiff pay the defendants' costs of certain hearings and motions, as well as a proportion of the defendants' costs of a particular hearing. The court also ordered that the costs payable by the plaintiff to the defendants be set off against the judgment sum payable by the defendants to the plaintiff. The court excused Mr S Brennan, who appeared as an amicus, from further attendance. Overall, the court found in favour of the defendants and ordered the plaintiff to pay a significant portion of the defendants' costs.