Xu v Cao & Du Management Pty Ltd

The case of Xu v Cao & Du Management Pty Ltd was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The plaintiff, Xu, sought a review of a notice to produce documents related to the terms of claimed retainers issued by the defendant, Cao & Du Management Pty Ltd. The primary legal issue before the court was whether the order sought by Xu in relation to the notice to produce was necessary under either rule 21 or rule 34 of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW). The court found that the order was not required as the notice to produce did not identify specific documents. Consequently, the application to set aside the notice to produce was dismissed.

In terms of costs, the court examined the conduct of the parties during the motion. Although there was no hearing on the merits and the plaintiff no longer wished to proceed, the court was required to make an order for costs. Given that the plaintiff effectively surrendered to the defendant, the court ruled that the costs of the motion were to be borne by the plaintiff. However, as all parties had a measure of success in relation to the motion, the costs were to be costs in the cause.

The final orders of the court were that Xu's application to set aside the notice to produce was dismissed, and that the costs of the motion were to be borne by Xu. However, since all parties had a measure of success, the costs were to be costs in the cause. This meant that the costs were to be apportioned among the parties according to the extent of their success in the motion.