A person required by a court order to cause proceeds of sale to be applied to pay a solicitor's costs is under a 'legal obligation to pay' those costs within s 301(1) of the Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld) and is a 'third party payer' entitled to apply for costs assessment under s 335(2). The obligation need not be owed to the law practice; an obligation owed to the client or to the court is sufficient. However, the current statutory requirement of a 'legal obligation to pay' is narrower than the 'liable to pay' test under predecessor legislation — a person upon whom the burden of costs merely falls in substance (without a legal obligation) does not qualify.
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