Dickens v State of New South Wales & Ors (No 2) [2018] NSWSC 14

Dickens v State of New South Wales & Ors (No 2) [2018] NSWSC 14

A gross sum costs order was appropriate under s 98(4)(c) of the Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) as the plaintiff remained unrepresented, was unlikely to satisfy a costs assessment, and the matters were not complex—gross sums of $29,000 and $60,000 were fair, reasonable, and discounted to account for any uncertainties.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
01 February 2018
Procedural Posture
Costs Application / Post Dismissal, Assessment of Costs
Outcome
Orders made for costs payable by the plaintiff to the second and third defendants in gross sums.
Legal Topics
['gross Sum Costs' 'unrepresented Litigant' 'discretionary Orders Under S 98(4)(c) Civil Procedure Act']
['civil Procedure' 'costs'] ['gross Sum Costs' 'unrepresented Litigant' 'discretionary Orders Under S 98(4)(c) Civil Procedure Act']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Costs Application / Post Dismissal, Assessment of Costs

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether gross sum assessment of costs under s 98(4)(c) Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) is appropriate' 'Appropriate sum to be fixed for costs payable by plaintiff to second and third defendants']

Ratio Decidendi

A gross sum costs order was appropriate under s 98(4)(c) of the Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) as the plaintiff remained unrepresented, was unlikely to satisfy a costs assessment, and the matters were not complex—gross sums of $29,000 and $60,000 were fair, reasonable, and discounted to account for any uncertainties.

Court Disposition

Orders made for costs payable by the plaintiff to the second and third defendants in gross sums.

Orders

  • ["Plaintiff to pay second defendant's costs in the sum of $29,000 pursuant to s 98(4)(c) Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW)." "Plaintiff to pay third defendant's costs in the sum of $60,000 pursuant to s 98(4)(c) Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW)." "Each gross sum includes costs under order 2 of 5 September 2017 for...