Nadarajapillai v Naderasa (No 2)

This matter concerned an application for costs against a legal practitioner, Jagdish Patel, who acted as the solicitor for the appellant, Nadarajapillai, in proceedings before the Court of Appeal of New South Wales. The dispute arose from allegations that costs incurred by the respondent, Naderasa, were a consequence of Mr Patel's alleged misconduct during the appeal.

The central legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether it possessed the power, under its supervisory jurisdiction over legal practitioners and the provisions of the *Civil Procedure Act 2005* (NSW) (specifically sections 56 and 99), to order Mr Patel to pay the costs incurred by the respondent due to his conduct. The court was required to determine if the circumstances of the case warranted such an order against the solicitor personally.

The Court of Appeal found that the conduct of Mr Patel had indeed led to the costs being incurred by the respondent. Applying the principles of its supervisory jurisdiction and the relevant sections of the *Civil Procedure Act 2005*, the court concluded that it was appropriate to make an order for costs against the solicitor personally. The court ordered that Jagdish Patel pay to the respondent the amount of costs the appellant had been ordered to pay the respondent on 27 April 2015, and further ordered that Mr Patel pay the respondent’s costs of the notice of motion filed on 8 May 2015.