Warda v Specialty Fashion Group Ltd (No 2)
[2018] NSWDC 224
•21 August 2018
District Court
New South Wales
Medium Neutral Citation: Warda v Specialty Fashion Group Ltd (No 2) [2018] NSWDC 224 Hearing dates: On the papers: 21 August 2018 Date of orders: 21 August 2018 Decision date: 21 August 2018 Jurisdiction: Civil Before: Judge Levy SC Decision: 1. Judgment for the plaintiff in the amount of $214,208;
2. Each party is to pay their own costs of the proceedings.Catchwords: COSTS – consequential effect of pre-hearing final offers made in work injury damages claim – each party to pay own costs of the proceedings Legislation Cited: Workers Compensation Regulation 2016, reg 94, reg 95, reg 96
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998, s 318ACases Cited: Warda v Specialty Fashion Group Ltd [2018] NSWDC 218 Category: Costs Parties: Margaret Warda (Plaintiff)
Specialty Fashion Group Ltd (Defendant)Representation: Counsel:
Solicitors:
Mr F Austen (Plaintiff)
Mr J Dodd (Defendant)
Gerard Malouf & Partners (Plaintiff)
Barker Henley (Defendant)
File Number(s): 2016/318617 Publication restriction: None
Judgment
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These reasons relate to the adjustment of the amount of a damages judgment delivered on 14 August 2018, to give effect to the terms of a defence that pleaded workers’ compensation payments, and the costs consequences of the principal decision, where a verdict and judgment was entered in favour of the plaintiff in the sum of $234,942: Warda v Specialty Fashion Group Ltd [2018] NSWDC 218.
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With the consent of the parties, the above matters remain to be resolved on the papers, by orders made in chambers, as follows.
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Pursuant to a consent award entered in the Workers Compensation Commission on 21 March 2014, the defendant had paid the plaintiff the sum of $200 per week from 31 January 2014 to 21 November 2014, those payments totalling $20,734. As a consequence, the judgment entered in the plaintiff’s favour on 14 August 2018 must be reduced from $234,942 to $214,208.
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Pursuant to s 318A of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998, the respective offers made by the parties were $350,000 (as made by the plaintiff) and $130,000 (as made by the defendant), each offer being clear of compensation payments already made.
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Pursuant to Workers’ Compensation Regulations 94 and 95, as the judgment entered in favour of the plaintiff was not higher than her final offer, and not less than the defendant’s final offer, each party must bear their own costs of the proceedings: Regulation 96 of the Workers Compensation Regulation 2016.
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Accordingly, the previous orders as to the judgment amount and costs made on 14 August 2018 are vacated, and instead, I make the following orders:
Judgment for the plaintiff in the amount of $214,208;
Each party is to pay their own costs of the proceedings.
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Decision last updated: 21 August 2018
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