Milankov & Milankov

The parties in this matter were Milankov and Milankov. The dispute concerned an application for leave to appeal against a decision of a single judge of the Family Court of Australia. The Full Court of the Family Court of Australia was constituted to hear this application.

The primary legal issue before the Full Court was whether the single judge had erred in law in dismissing the applicant's application for an order that the respondent pay the applicant's costs of the proceedings. This involved considering the principles governing the award of costs in family law proceedings, particularly in circumstances where an offer to settle had been made.

The Full Court reasoned that the single judge had failed to properly consider the impact of the respondent's offer to settle, which had been made pursuant to rule 10.12 of the Family Law Rules. The Court held that the single judge had erred by not giving sufficient weight to the fact that the applicant had ultimately achieved a more favourable outcome than that offered by the respondent. The Court reiterated the principle that costs orders should generally follow the event, and that a failure to accept a reasonable offer to settle, where a better outcome is subsequently achieved, can be a relevant factor in determining the appropriate costs order.

The Full Court granted leave to appeal, allowed the appeal, and ordered that the respondent pay the applicant's costs of the proceedings in the Family Court, and also ordered that the respondent pay the applicant's costs of the appeal.