Queanbeyan Leagues Club Ltd v Poldune Pty Ltd & Ors [2000] NSWSC 1100

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : Queanbeyan Leagues Club Ltd v Poldune Pty Ltd & Ors [2000] NSWSC 1100 CURRENT JURISDICTION: Equity FILE NUMBER(S) : SC 3418/96 HEARING DATE(S) : 23 April and 4 August 1999, 20 April and 6 October 2000 JUDGMENT DATE : 1 November 2000

Queanbeyan Leagues Club Limited (P) Poldune Pty Limited (D1) Government Insurance Office of NSW (D2) Peter Michael Bowen & partners named in Schedule D practising as Gadens Ridgeway (D3-13) PARTIES : M J Armstrong (D14) GIO Life Limited (D15) Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (D16) Marshall Marks Kennedy (XD1) John Landerer practising as Landerer & Company (XD to 2nd XC) JUDGMENT OF : Hamilton J

G C Lindsay SC and A Ridley (P) S P Gullotta (D1) G Colman (D2 & 15) COUNSEL : No appearance (D3-13) J Timbs QC and I Bailey (D14) M L D Einfeld QC and J E Thomson (D16) M T McCulloch (XD1) D Hammerschlag (XD to 2nd XC) Bernard Collaery & Associates (P) Kemp Strang (D1) Barker Gosling (D2 & 15) SOLICITORS : Mallesons Stephen Jaques (D3-13) Tress Cocks & Maddox (D14) Norton Smith & Co (D16) Phillips Fox (XD1) Minter Ellison (XD to 2nd XC) CATCHWORDS : DAMAGES [10] - General principles - Recovery of costs - Difference between costs incurred and costs recovered - PROCEDURE [574] - Costs - Departing from general rule - Order for indemnity costs - Factors relevant to exercise of court's discretion - Hopelessness of proceedings - Offer of compromise. LEGISLATION CITED : Supreme Court Act 1970 ss 63, 78, 124(1)(j) Supreme Court Rules 1970 Pt 52A r 8 Anderson v Bowles (1951) 84 CLR 310 Attorney General v The Mayor of Sheffield (1912) 106 LT 367 Australian Securities Commission v Aust-Home Investments Limited (1993) 44 FCR 194 Avenhouse v Hornsby SC (1998) 44 NSWLR 1 AWA Ltd v Daniels t/as Deloitte Haskins and Sells SCNSW Rogers CJ CommD 8 October 1992 unreported Berry v British Transport Commission [1962] 1 QB 306 Blue Circle Industries PLC v Ministry of Defence [1999] Ch 289 Britannia Hygienic Laundry Co v Thornycroft (John I) & Co (1925) 94 LJKB 858; 95 LJKB 237 British Racing Drivers' Club Ltd v Hextall Erskine & Co [1996] 3 All ER 667 Cockburn v Edwards (1881) 18 ChD 449 Coles Myer Ltd v Bowman [1996] 1 VR 457 Colgate-Palmolive Company v Cussons Pty Limited (1993) 46 FCR 225 Degmam Pty Ltd (in Liq) v Wright (No 2) [1983] 2 NSWLR 354 Dein v Wentworth Gold Field Proprietary Co (1899) 15 WN (NSW) 280 Doe v Filliter (1844) 13 M & W 47; 153 ER 20 Dorofee v Pennsauken Township Planning Board 453 A 2d 1341 (1982) Energy & Resource Conservation Co Pty Ltd (in liquidation) v Abigroup Contractors Pty Ltd NSWSC Rolfe J 18 March 1998 unreported Fountain Selected Meats (Sales) Pty Limited v International Produce Merchants Pty Limited (1988) 81 ALR 397 Hadid v Australis Media Ltd [1999] NSWSC 32 CASES CITED : Hammond & Co v Bussey (1887) 20 QBD 79 Hobartville Stud Pty Ltd v Union Insurance Co Ltd (1991) 25 NSWLR 358 Huntsman Chemical Company Australia Pty Ltd v International Pools Australia Ltd (1995) 36 NSWLR 242 Lonrho Plc v Fayed (No 5) [1993] 1 WLR 1489 Maitland Hospital v Fisher [No 2] (1992) 27 NSWLR 721 Multicon Engineering Pty Limited v Federal Airports Corporation (1996) 138 ALR 425 Penn v Bristol & West Building Society [1997] 1 WLR 1356 Queanbeyan Leagues Club Ltd v Poldune Pty Ltd [2000] NSWSC 216 Ritchie v British Insulated Callender's Cables (Aust) Pty Limited (1959) 77 WN(NSW) 299 Ross v Caunters [1980] Ch 297 St George Commercial Credit Corporation Ltd v Collins Wallis Properties Pty Ltd NSWSC Rolfe J 21 August 1998 unreported Seavision Investments SA v Evennett (The "Tiburon") [1992] 2 Lloyd's Rep 26 Segenhoe Limited v Akins (1992) 29 NSWLR 569 Skinner & Edwards (Builders) Pty Limited v Australian Telecommunications Corp (1992) 27 NSWLR 567 Underwriters at Lloyds v Ellis NSWCA 25 February 1998 unreported Wickstead v Browne (1992) 30 NSWLR 1 Wiffen v Bailey and Romford UDC [1915] 1 KB 600 22 Am Jur 2d tit Damages s 622 12(1) Halsbury's Laws of England (4th Ed Reissue, 1998) tit Damages [826] - [832] McGregor on Damages (16th Ed, 1997) Ch 16 and First Supplement (2000) DECISION : Poldune's claim for indemnity costs against the plaintiff refused; the ANZ Bank's claim for indemnity costs against the plaintiff refused up to but granted after 10 June 1997; Mr Landerer granted indemnity costs against the GIO; ruling that as a matter of law neither the plaintiff nor any cross claimant can recover as damages against any defendant or cross defendant any costs of the proceedings.