FTG Securities Ltd v Bank of New Zealand

The case of FTG Securities Ltd v Bank of New Zealand involved a dispute between FTG Securities Limited and Bank of New Zealand, with the latter seeking costs following the dismissal of FTG's application for an interim injunction to restrain a mortgagee sale of a property. The legal issues before the court included determining the appropriate scale of costs for the steps taken by the Bank of New Zealand in responding to the application, and whether any increased costs should be awarded. The court examined the nature of the proceeding, the time required for each step, and whether the unsuccessful party had contributed unnecessarily to the time and expense of the proceeding.

The court found that the proceeding should be considered as a category 2 proceeding, requiring counsel of average skill and experience. The court agreed with the Bank of New Zealand's categorisation of the steps taken and awarded scale costs accordingly. Furthermore, the court found that increased costs were justified as the Bank of New Zealand had to prepare a substantial amount of evidence and submissions under urgency, and the application for an interim injunction entirely lacked merit. The court awarded a 50% uplift on the relevant scale costs, resulting in a total of $24,195.50 in costs, plus $226.09 in disbursements.

In summary, the court awarded the Bank of New Zealand costs and disbursements in the amount of $24,195.50 and $226.09 respectively, following the dismissal of FTG Securities Limited's application for an interim injunction.