Cost order against solicitor who did not seek expert evidence

Forensic Partner Ben Mahler considers a NSW Supreme Court decision where the plaintiffs' solicitor was ordered to pay the costs of a trial in circumstances where they advised their client no expert evidence was needed to prove their case.

KordaMentha is releasing Expert Evidence: Recent Cases Edition 3 this month. If you would like a complimentary copy of the eBook, click here to register your interest. In addition to the 40 case reviews and 5 articles in that book, KordaMentha has identified and summarised approximately 300 cases of potential interest in the book. This case (Nahata v Robertson (No 2)[2023] NSWSC 1297) was summarised as follows:

Plaintiffs' solicitor failed to appropriately advise his clients to engage an expert, and demonstrated misunderstanding of the legal position by advising that it was unnecessary to respond to the defendants' expert's report. Court determined serious incompetence, misconduct, or neglect, and ordered that solicitor pay