The Owners - Strata Plan No 87265 v Saaib (No 2)

In this case, The Owners – Strata Plan No 87265 were the plaintiffs and Saaib was the defendant. The dispute arose in the context of strata title litigation in New South Wales. The plaintiffs sought to recover costs incurred in their legal action against the defendant. The case was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The court was required to determine whether the general rule that costs follow the event could be set aside based on offers of compromise made by the defendant. Specifically, the court had to assess whether the defendant's early and late stage walk away offers met the criteria for an exception to the general rule. The court also needed to consider whether the evidence available at the time of the later offer presented significant difficulties for the plaintiffs' claim.

The court found that the early offer made by the defendant lacked a real element of compromise, as it was not a genuine attempt to resolve the dispute. However, the later offer made by the defendant was based on evidence that raised significant difficulties for the plaintiffs' claim. The court held that the later offer met the criteria for an exception to the general rule under the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW) r 42.15A, as it was a genuine attempt to resolve the dispute. As a result, the court awarded indemnity costs to the defendant.

The court ordered that the plaintiffs were to pay the defendant's costs of the proceedings, including the indemnity costs awarded under the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW) r 42.15A.