The mere withdrawal of disciplinary charges by the Legal Services Commissioner does not constitute 'special circumstances' under s 462(4) of the Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld) warranting a costs order against the Commissioner. Where charges are regularly instituted and justifiably pursued, and are withdrawn upon review of material put forward by the practitioner, that does not take the matter out of the normal rule that a successful practitioner is not entitled to costs. The question of the basis of assessment (standard vs indemnity) must be separately considered from the threshold question of whether special circumstances exist.
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