The defendant solicitors, DLA Piper, had sought an order for a witness summons against the BDO, which had been accountants to DLA’s client now accused of false accounting. BDO successfully resisted the issuing of the summons, and was awarded its costs. The judge in the Crown Court had found herself unable to aard costs on a statutory basis, but awarded them purporting to use the Court’s inherent jurisdiction.
Held: The appeal succeeded. The 1965 did indeed make no provision to allow payment of costs, and nor could an order be made under the 1985 Act without a finding of negligence. There might be a glaring gap in the statutory provisions, but with the explicit wasted costs provisions the court’s inherent powers could not be extended to fill that gap.
BDO had no standing to appeal by case stated as it was not party to the proceedings, and the costs application could not be conflated with the main action.
Moses LJ, Foskett J
[2013] EWHC 3970 (Admin), [2013] WLR (D) 515
Bailii, WLRD
Criminal Procedure (Attendance of Witnesses) Act 1965, Prosecution of Offences Act 1985
England and Wales
Criminal Practice, Costs
Updated: 01 November 2021; Ref: scu.518993
