| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Christchurch |
| Reference No | CA 1A/09 |
| Determination date | 25 February 2009 |
| Member | P Cheyne |
| Representation | A Riches ; J Shingleton |
| Location | Christchurch |
| Parties | Houghton v The Perfect Food Company Ltd |
| Summary | COSTS - Successful personal grievance - Less than one day investigation meeting - Applicant sought reasonable contribution to costs - Respondent sought costs to lie where they fall - Respondent claimed applicant claimed 10 times more compensation than awarded which was barrier to settlement - Claimed applicant acted in bad faith by secretly recording phone conversation with respondent and not disclosing that until asked directly by Authority during investigation meeting - Claimed respondent’s managing director (“B”) acted honestly and candidly throughout - Claimed applicant denigrated B during investigation meeting - Authority found party’s award of compensation often fell short of sums claimed - Found applicant clearly successful party - Found could not assess settlement position without resort to without prejudice negotiations which could not look at - Found as B unlawfully withheld wages and holiday pay and unjustifiably dismissed him could not claim moral high ground - Secretly recording employer did not disentitle applicant to costs - Costs not to be used as punishment for party’s conduct - However, found failure to disclose prejudiced possibility of matter being resolved without investigation meeting and increased length of investigation meeting - Modest reduction in costs warranted - No reason to depart from daily tariff approach - Costs award of $1,750 appropriate |
| Result | Costs in favour of applicant ($1,750) ; Disbursements in favour of applicant ($70)(Filing fee) |
| Main Category | Costs |
| Cases Cited | PBO Ltd (formerly Rush Security Ltd) v Da Cruz [2005] 1 ERNZ 808;White v Auckland District Health Board [2008] ERNZ 635 |
| Number of Pages | 3 |
| PDF File Link: | ca 1a_09.pdf [pdf 17 KB] |