Polias v Ryall (No 2)

In Polias v Ryall, the plaintiff, Mr Polias, sued the defendant, Mr Ryall, for defamation. The dispute involved statements made by Mr Ryall regarding Mr Polias's involvement in a crime. The case was heard in the Federal Court of Australia. The primary issue before the court was whether Mr Ryall should be required to pay interest on the costs incurred by Mr Polias in the litigation. The court was also required to determine the appropriate approach to calculating the interest on indemnity costs under section 40 of the Defamation Act 2005 (Cth).

The court considered two approaches to calculating interest on costs. The ordinary approach was that interest on costs paid should be awarded, while the alternative approach was to calculate interest only on the costs that the court orders the defendant to pay. The court found that the ordinary approach was more rational and aligned with the principle of indemnity costs. Under the ordinary approach, interest on costs is awarded to compensate the plaintiff for the financial burden of litigation. The court held that the ordinary approach was consistent with the purpose of indemnity costs, which is to ensure that the defendant bears the full cost of litigation when the plaintiff is successful. The court concluded that the ordinary approach was the appropriate method for calculating interest on indemnity costs under section 40 of the Defamation Act.

The court ordered that Mr Ryall should pay interest on the costs incurred by Mr Polias in the litigation, calculated using the ordinary approach. The court further directed that the interest should be calculated from the date when the costs were paid by Mr Polias until the date of the judgment. The court held that this approach was consistent with the principles of indemnity costs and the purpose of awarding interest on costs. The final orders of the court were that Mr Ryall should pay interest on the costs incurred by Mr Polias in the litigation, calculated in accordance with the ordinary approach, and that the interest should be paid from the date when the costs were paid by Mr Polias until the date of the judgment.