Riva NSW Pty Limited v Mark A Fraser; Fraser v Riva (NSW) (No. 4) [2022] NSWSC 1624

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Riva NSW Pty Limited v Mark A Fraser; Fraser v Riva (NSW) (No. 4) [2022] NSWSC 1624 Hearing dates: On the papers in chambers. Date of orders: 28 November 2022 Decision date: 28 November 2022 Jurisdiction: Equity Before: Slattery J Decision: Order for indemnity costs made. Solicitors cannot recover costs for any period when the solicitor was self-represented. Solicitors permitted to recover professional costs for period when they were clients of the incorporated legal practice acting on their behalf providing legal services to them in the litigation. Some professional costs and some disbursements recoverable. Defer the making of a specified gross sum costs order instead of assessed costs until the parties have had an opportunity to put final submissions based on these reasons. Catchwords: COSTS – indemnity costs – long-running contest as to costs – costs order made in proceedings on the ordinary basis – leave granted to claim costs on the indemnity basis – whether the Court may consider relevant delinquency to ground an order for indemnity costs based on conduct occurring before the commencement of the proceedings. COSTS – the Chorley exception – solicitors successful in proceedings against a former client – costs order made in favour of the solicitors on the ordinary basis – solicitors seek recovery of professional costs and disbursements from the former client – solicitors had retained an incorporated legal practice to provide legal services to them in the proceedings and to act on their behalf –– whether the solicitors can recover the professional costs and disbursements incurred between the corporation and the solicitors, being the clients of the corporation. COSTS – proceedings between solicitors and a former client arising out of a dispute about costs – whether a specified gross sum costs order instead of assessed costs should be made under Civil Procedure Act 2005, s 98(4)(c) – whether the court has sufficient material available to it to make a specified gross sum costs order instead of assessed costs fairly between the parties with sufficient confidence to arrive at an appropriate sum – what is the appropriate quantum of any specified gross sum costs order. Legislation Cited: Civil Procedure Act 2005, s 61(2)(c) Corporations Act 2001 Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014 Legal Profession Uniform Law (NSW), ss 6, 104 Supreme Court Act 1970 Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 Cases Cited: Ashby v Slipper (No. 2) [2016] FCA 550 Australian Medi-Care Company Limited v Hamilton Funds Pharmaceutical Pty Ltd (No. 3) [2008] FCA 976 Australasian Performing Rights Assoc Ltd v Marlin [1999] FCA 1006 Baillieu Knight Frank (NSW) Pty Ltd v Ted Manny Real Estate Pty Ltd (1992) 30 NSWLR 359 Beach Petroleum NL v Johnson (No. 2) (1995) 57 FCR 199 Bell Lawyers Pty Ltd v Pentelow (2020) 269 CLR 333 Bitek Pty Ltd v IConnect Pty Ltd [2012] FCA 506 Burrows v Macpherson and Kelley Lawyers (Sydney) Pty Ltd [2020] NSWCA 148 Cachia v Hanes (1994) 179 CLR 403 Clifford v Vegas Enterprises Pty Ltd [2009] FCA 1204 Coshott v Lenin [2007] NSWCA 153 Coshott v Spencer and Ors, High Court of Australia, unreported 11 September 2019 Degmam Pty Ltd (in liquidation) v Wright (No 2) [1983] 2 NSWLR 354 Dennis v Joukhador [2021] NSWSC 870 Edgar & Walker v Mead (1916) 23 CLR 29 Fountain Selected Meats (Sales) Pty Ltd v International Produce Merchants Pty Ltd (1988) 81 ALR 397 Griffith & Beerens Pty Ltd v Duggan (No. 2) [2008] VSC 230 Guneser v Aitken Partners Pty Ltd [2020] VSC 239 Hadid v Lenfest Communications Inc [2000] FCA 628 Halliday v SACS Group Pty Ltd (1993) 67 ALJR 678 Hamilton v Whitehead (1988) 166 CLR 121 Hamod v State of New South Wales [2011] NSWCA 375 Harrison v Schipp [2001] NSWCA 13 Hearne v Street (2008) 235 CLR 125 Holpitt Pty Ltd v Varimu Pty Ltd (1991) 29 FCR 576 Jarra Creek Central Packaging Shed Pty Ltd v Amcor Limited [2008] FCA 554 Hypec Electronics Pty Limited (in liquidation) v Mead; BL GY International v Hypec Electronics Pty Ltd (in liquidation) (2004) 61 NSWLR 169 James Hardie and Co Pty Ltd v Hall (1998) 43 NSWLR 554 Liberty Funding Pty Ltd v Phoenix Capital Ltd (2005) 218 ALR 283 London Scottish Benefits Society v Chorley (1884) 13 QBD 872 McCabe v British American Tobacco Australia Services Limited [2002] VSC 150 McIlraith v Ilkin & Anor [2007] NSWSC 1052 Oshlack v Richmond River Council (1998) 193 CLR 72 Patrick v Capital Finance Pty Ltd (No. 4) [2003] FCA 436 Penson v Titan National Pty Ltd (No.3) [2015] NSWCA 121 Prest v Petrodel Resources Ltd [2013] 2 AC 415 R v Godall (1975) 11 SASR 94 Re Smith; Ex parte Rundle (No 2) (1991) 6 WAR 299 Riva NSW Pty Ltd v Mark A Fraser & Christopher P Clancy trading as Fraser Clancy Lawyers [2014] NSWCA 454 Riva NSW Pty Ltd v Mark A Fraser & Christopher P Clancy trading as Fraser Clancy Lawyers [2018] NSWCA 53 Riva NSW Pty Ltd v Mark A Fraser & Christopher P Clancy trading as Fraser Clancy Lawyers (No.3) [2018] NSWCA 186 Riva NSW Pty Ltd v Mark A Fraser & Christopher P Clancy trading as Fraser Clancy Lawyers (No.3) [2018] NSWCA 326 Riva NSW Pty Ltd v Mark A Fraser; Fraser v Riva (NSW) Pty Ltd [2019] NSWSC 1310 Riva NSW Pty Ltd v Mark A Fraser & Christopher P Clancy trading as Fraser Clancy Lawyers [2020] NSWCA 210 Riva NSW Pty Limited v Mark A Fraser; Fraser v Riva (NSW) (No. 2) [2020] NSWSC 1162 Riva NSW Pty Ltd v Mark A Fraser (No. 3) [2020] NSWSC 1472 Salomon v Salomon & Co Ltd [1897] AC 22 Spencer v Coshott [2021] NSWCA 235 Springfield Nominees Pty Ltd v Bridgelands Securities Limited (1992) 38 FCR 217 United Petroleum Australia Pty Ltd v Herbert Smith Freehills [2020] VSCA 15 Velissaris v Fitzgerald [2008] VSCA 152 Ventouris Enterprises Pty Ltd v Dib Group Pty Ltd (No. 3) [2010] NSWSC 1479 Willmott v Barber (1881) 17 Ch D 772 Category: Consequential orders Parties: In proceedings 2017/166645: First Plaintiff: Mark Fraser Second Plaintiff: Christopher Clancy trading as Fraser Clancy Lawyers First Defendant: Riva (NSW) Pty Ltd ACN 113881815