Gorrie Fuel (Si) Ltd v Gittoes

Gorrie Fuel (Si) Ltd applied for leave to appeal from a decision of the Employment Court. The respondent, William David Gittoes, sought an order for costs on an indemnity basis, arguing that the appeal was meritless and vexatious. Gittoes claimed his actual costs to date were $1,852, plus $42 by way of disbursements. The grounds for indemnity costs were based on the considerable work counsel had to undertake to discuss the merits of the appeal with Gittoes and the perceived meritlessness and vexatiousness of the proposed appeal.

The Court of Appeal found that the usual practice is to make a modest award of costs, up to $500, where an appeal is abandoned at an early stage. The Court could not determine the meritlessness of the appeal on the material before it and did not consider the other consideration raised by Gittoes sufficient to justify an award of costs on an indemnity basis. The Court referred to its earlier judgment in Peters v Television New Zealand to support its decision. The Court ordered Gorrie Fuel (Si) Ltd to pay costs of $500, plus usual disbursements, to Gittoes.

In conclusion, the Court of Appeal dismissed the application for leave to appeal and ordered Gorrie Fuel (Si) Ltd to pay Gittoes costs of $500, plus usual disbursements. The Court did not find the appeal to be meritless or vexatious, but considered a modest award of costs appropriate given the early abandonment of the appeal.