A court will be more reluctant to order indemnity costs against a self-represented litigant who promptly discontinues a hopeless appeal upon receiving legal advice. The policy against penalising responsible abandonment of unwinnable appeals weighs against indemnity costs even where the appeal was without merit. Conduct already penalised by indemnity costs at earlier stages should not be 'double counted' to justify indemnity costs on a discontinued appeal.
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