| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Christchurch |
| Reference No | CA 146A/06 |
| Hearing date | 20 Oct 2006 |
| Determination date | 11 December 2006 |
| Member | J Crichton |
| Representation | R Davidson ; A Shaw |
| Location | Christchurch |
| Parties | Gutsell v Koru Blue Ltd t/a Airport Lodge Motel |
| Summary | COSTS – Successful personal grievance – Less than one day investigation meeting - Applicant sought contribution to total costs of $6,500 plus disbursements – Alleged application required significant legal research into vulnerable employment – Authority Member who investigated claim different from Member deciding costs - Substantive determination dealt with matter in under four pages – Decision turned on applicant's legal status - Claim of legal complexity not made out – Respondent considered $750 costs appropriate and argued applicant’s costs unreasonably inflated by unnecessary work – Respondent referred to previous Member's decision to give preliminary view of matter and encourage parties to settle - Claimed negotiations conducted on open basis and included actual amounts discussed in costs submission - Applicant objected and claimed discussion without prejudice - Asked costs be referred to another Member - Authority support staff had provided Member with copy of submissions with appropriate numbers blanked out - Nothing turned on issue as Member had no way of knowing whether discussion without prejudice and not influenced by numbers to which he had no access - Appropriate to award applicant $1,000 costs |
| Result | Costs in favour of applicant ($1,000) |
| Cases Cited | PBO Ltd(formerly Rush Security Ltd) v Da Cruz [2005] 1 ERNZ 808 |
| Number of Pages | 3 |
| PDF File Link: | ca 146a_06.pdf [pdf 19 KB] |