Jon McLaurin McGeoch v Henri Hendriks & 7 Ors (No 2) [2007] NSWSC 364

Jon McLaurin McGeoch v Henri Hendriks & 7 Ors (No 2) [2007] NSWSC 364

The plaintiff's damages order was preferred because, if required to express a loss of chance percentage, the Court considered the chance that the deceased would have signed the agreement to be closer to 100% and certainly above the defendant's suggested range. On costs, although the plaintiff was successful, the deliberate abandonment of issues at the commencement of the trial was an exceptional circumstance warranting exclusion of the costs of those abandoned issues from the plaintiff's costs order and awarding those costs to the defendant.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
13 April 2007
Procedural Posture
Procedure Costs / Ex Tempore Judgment to Finalise the Matter After Reasons for Judgment Had Been Previously Published
Outcome
Plaintiff to have costs other than those of issues abandoned. Defendant to have those costs.
Legal Topics
['costs Following the Event' 'costs of Abandoned Issues' 'indemnity Costs' 'loss of Chance Assessment']
['civil Procedure' 'costs' 'damages'] ['costs Following the Event' 'costs of Abandoned Issues' 'indemnity Costs' 'loss of Chance Assessment']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Procedure Costs / Ex Tempore Judgment to Finalise the Matter After Reasons for Judgment Had Been Previously Published

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ["Whether the plaintiff's damages should be assessed using the defendant's suggested loss of chance percentage range of 51% to 60%." 'Whether the plaintiff, although successful, should be deprived of costs associated with issues abandoned at the commencement of the trial.']

Ratio Decidendi

The plaintiff's damages order was preferred because, if required to express a loss of chance percentage, the Court considered the chance that the deceased would have signed the agreement to be closer to 100% and certainly above the defendant's suggested range. On costs, although the plaintiff was successful, the deliberate abandonment of issues at the commencement of the trial was an exceptional circumstance warranting exclusion of the costs of those abandoned issues from the plaintiff's costs order and awarding those costs to the defendant.

Court Disposition

Plaintiff to have costs other than those of issues abandoned. Defendant to have those costs.

Orders

  • ['The order proposed by the plaintiff with respect to the amount of damages is to be preferred to that submitted by the defendant.' 'Costs should be assessed on the ordinary basis to 9 December 2004 and on an indemnity basis thereafter.' 'The plaintiff is to have costs other than those of issues abandoned.' 'The...