Rickard and Rickard (No. 2)

The Full Court of the Family Court of Australia, constituted by Foster J, considered an application for costs in the matter of *Rickard and Rickard (No. 2)*. The dispute concerned the wife's costs incurred in relation to applications determined by orders made on 1 June 2018, and a subsequent application for costs.

The primary legal issue before the Court was the appropriate allocation of costs between the parties, specifically whether the wife should be awarded her costs and, if so, to what extent. This involved considering the conduct of the parties in the litigation and the overall merits of the applications that had been determined.

Foster J ordered that the husband pay 75 per cent of the wife’s costs. This decision was based on an assessment of the parties' conduct throughout the proceedings, indicating that the husband's actions or approach to the litigation warranted a significant contribution to the wife's legal expenses. The costs were to be assessed on a party/party basis and were to be agreed upon within one month, or otherwise assessed by the Court.