Shalhoub v Johnson (No 2)

Shalhoub v Johnson (No 2) was a case before the court where the plaintiff sought costs and interest related to a previous litigation. The defendants opposed the plaintiff’s application for gross sum costs and additional interest on prior costs orders. They argued that the plaintiff’s costs application was not warranted given the circumstances and outcome of the proceedings. The court was tasked with determining whether the defendants should be liable for the plaintiff’s costs on a gross basis and if further interest on the costs orders should be granted.

The legal issues before the court included whether the defendants were liable for the plaintiff’s costs on a gross basis under section 98(4) of the Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) and if further interest on the costs orders was appropriate. The court also needed to determine if the defendants’ applications were justified and if any interest should be awarded from specific dates.

The court found that the plaintiff was not entitled to costs on a gross basis. It held that the circumstances did not support such an order and that the defendants’ conduct did not warrant a departure from the usual basis of costs. Regarding the application for additional interest, the court found that the defendants were entitled to interest on the costs orders from certain dates, as per the mathematically agreed amounts outlined in the Notice of Motion. The court granted this application and ordered the parties to reflect these amounts in Short Minutes of Order. The court dismissed the rest of the defendants’ applications and ordered each party to bear their own costs of the Notice of Motion.

In conclusion, the court ordered that the plaintiff pay the defendants' costs of the proceedings on the ordinary basis, refused the defendants' application for a gross sum costs order, and granted their application for further interest on the costs orders. The parties were directed to update the Short Minutes of Order to reflect the agreed interest amounts and each party was to bear their own costs of the Notice of Motion.