Where contempt proceedings are settled on undertakings without admissions, a court may order costs against the party in breach without a formal hearing on the merits, provided the court can conclude from the material before it that the party acted unreasonably. The court is not required to make specific factual findings equivalent to those in a contested hearing. However, the dissent highlights the risk that such orders may be set aside where the judge fails to identify the factual basis for a finding of unreasonable conduct.
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