Sukkar v Haoui (No.2)

In Sukkar v Haoui (No.2), the plaintiff, Sukkar, sought an order for the defendant, Haoui, to pay his legal costs. The dispute arose out of a broader case involving a motor vehicle accident. The application for costs was made under the Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW). The legal issue before the court was whether the plaintiff's solicitor, who had been on the record and was about to withdraw, should be liable for the costs of the defendant and another firm that appeared at the hearing. The court was required to decide whether the plaintiff's solicitor could be held liable for the costs incurred by the other firm in opposing the application.

The court held that the plaintiff's solicitor, who had applied for leave to withdraw, was not entitled to be relieved from liability for the costs of the defendant and the other firm. The court reasoned that the solicitor had acted as the plaintiff's representative and had been on the record. Although another firm appeared at the hearing, it did not formally join the proceedings, and the court was not satisfied that the other firm had acted as the plaintiff's solicitor. The court found that the plaintiff's solicitor was liable for the costs of the defendant and the other firm in opposing the application. The court noted that the plaintiff had not sought to substitute the other firm as his solicitor, and the other firm had not been joined to the application. The court held that the plaintiff's solicitor was liable for the costs of the defendant and the other firm.

The court ordered that the plaintiff's solicitor be liable for the costs of the defendant and the other firm in opposing the application for costs. The court further ordered that the defendant's costs of the application be paid by the plaintiff's solicitor. The court also ordered that the other firm's costs of the application be paid by the plaintiff's solicitor.