Thompson v Cannon

The case of Thompson v Cannon involved an application by the applicant to the Tribunal to set aside a costs agreement. The matter had previously been subject to mediation, resulting in the execution of a deed. The applicant failed to make the payment agreed to under the deed. The respondent sought the applicant’s consent regarding draft orders, but no consent was given. Consequently, the respondent brought an application seeking the dismissal of the applicant's application, the making of the agreed payment with interest, past and future costs of enforcing the deed, and a declaration that the deed created a charge over a property to secure payment. The respondent offered to consent to orders that both applications be dismissed with no order for costs, but no response was received from the applicant.

The legal issues the court was required to decide included whether the interests of justice required the making of a costs order under s 102(1) of the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2009 (Qld), given the applicant's failure to perform obligations agreed to in a mediation and refusal to accept offers to settle the proceedings. The court also needed to determine whether the respondent could recover her costs in these proceedings, as most of the work of the incorporated legal practice in the proceedings had been performed by the respondent.

The court held that the applicant’s application should be dismissed, and the respondent’s application should be otherwise dismissed. The court found that the interests of justice required the making of a costs order in favour of the respondent. The court assessed the respondent’s costs at $20,699.65, which the applicant was required to pay.

The final orders of the court were that the applicant’s application was dismissed, the respondent’s application was otherwise dismissed, and the applicant was to pay the respondent’s costs, assessed at $20,699.65.