Pongrass v Small & Leighton [2021] NSWCATCD 131

Pongrass v Small & Leighton [2021] NSWCATCD 131

The landlord's costs application was dismissed because the acrimony over termination of the tenancy and vacant possession on sale of the premises was not unusual before the Tribunal, did not involve special difficult legal issues, the difficulty arose from the parties' acrimony and failure to co-operate rather than legal complexity, and the landlord's substantive application had been dismissed; therefore no special circumstances justified an order for costs.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
25 November 2021
Procedural Posture
Costs Application in Residential Tenancy Proceedings / Determined on the Papers
Outcome
Application for costs by the landlord dismissed.
Legal Topics
['special Circumstances for Costs' 'dispensing With Hearing' 'civil and Administrative Tribunal Proceedings']
['costs' 'residential Tenancy'] ['special Circumstances for Costs' 'dispensing With Hearing' 'civil and Administrative Tribunal Proceedings']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Costs Application in Residential Tenancy Proceedings / Determined on the Papers

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether a hearing on costs should be dispensed with under s 50(2) of the Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013.' 'Whether special circumstances existed under s 60 of the Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013 to justify an order for costs in favour of the landlord.']

Ratio Decidendi

The landlord's costs application was dismissed because the acrimony over termination of the tenancy and vacant possession on sale of the premises was not unusual before the Tribunal, did not involve special difficult legal issues, the difficulty arose from the parties' acrimony and failure to co-operate rather than legal complexity, and the landlord's substantive application had been dismissed; therefore no special circumstances justified an order for costs.

Court Disposition

Application for costs by the landlord dismissed.

Orders

  • ['A hearing on costs is dispensed with pursuant to s 50(2) of the Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013.' 'The application for costs by the landlord, Mr Pongrass is dismissed.']