Narradine Pty Ltd v Mascot Steel and Tools Pty Ltd

Narradine Pty Ltd was a party to litigation against Mascot Steel and Tools Pty Ltd. The dispute involved claims for damages related to alleged breaches of contract and associated legal proceedings. The case was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The primary focus of the litigation was whether the plaintiff was entitled to a costs order under the prevailing circumstances, specifically whether costs should follow the event.

The legal issues before the court were centred on the principles governing the award of costs in litigation, particularly in relation to the circumstances under which costs should follow the event. The plaintiff sought an order that the costs incurred in the proceedings should be paid by the defendant, regardless of the outcome of the substantive claims. The defendant, on the other hand, argued that such an order was not warranted and that costs should not follow the event unless there were exceptional circumstances justifying such an award.

The court considered the principles established in various authorities and determined that, in the absence of exceptional circumstances, costs should not automatically follow the event. The court emphasised that the traditional approach was for costs to follow the event only in cases where the party ordered to pay costs had acted vexatiously, oppressively, or without merit. The court found that the plaintiff had not demonstrated that the defendant's conduct met these criteria. Consequently, the court declined to make an order for costs to follow the event.

The final orders of the court were that the plaintiff's application for an order that costs should follow the event was dismissed. The court also made an order for the defendant to pay the plaintiff’s costs of the proceedings on the standard basis.