The Court of Appeal awarded costs to the respondent Taxing Master and notice party after dismissing Anthony J. Fitzpatrick’s appeal, and ordered an interim payment of €20,000 toward the notice party’s costs.
The judgment, delivered by Ms Justice Donnelly on 2 February 2021, dealt with costs following the court’s dismissal on 24 November 2020 of Fitzpatrick’s appeal against the refusal of judicial review of three certificates of taxation. The underlying judicial review had challenged the Taxing Master’s decisions on fair-procedure and objective-bias grounds.
Fitzpatrick asked the court to make no order for costs, arguing that the registration of the business name “Behan & Associates” in the respondent’s name was a special circumstance. The court rejected that argument. It said the business-name issue was only one part of his case and that he had also intended to seek judicial review after the Taxing Master refused an adjournment. The respondent had been entirely successful, and the court found no special circumstances to depart from the general rule that costs follow the event. It reached the same conclusion for the notice party, who had been the contradictor in the judicial review proceedings.
Both were awarded their costs of the appeal, including the costs of the written submissions and oral hearing on costs. The notice party had sought costs on a solicitor-and-client basis, relying on submissions about Fitzpatrick’s conduct in related liquidation proceedings. The court declined that request. It said such an order required precise identification of the conduct and its consequences, and noted that the issue had not been pressed in oral argument and that the difference between the two costs bases was minimal. The notice party’s costs were therefore awarded on the usual party-and-party basis.
The notice party had sought an interim payment of €30,000, citing delays in payment and in the costs-adjudication process. The court said it had jurisdiction to order an interim payment and that the history of the proceedings and outstanding costs bills supported doing so. It noted that €18,000 had already been paid as a condition of a stay on payment of the overall costs pending the appeal.
The court ordered Fitzpatrick to pay €20,000 within 21 days. The notice party undertook to hold the payment and repay any difference if the costs ultimately adjudicated were lower. The judgment records that Edwards J. and Haughton J. agreed.