Under the Legal Profession Act 1987 (NSW), a Costs Assessor's function includes determining and quantifying interest on bills of costs, and 'the amount of costs' in s 208J(3) includes any interest component so determined. However, where the assessor fails to quantify interest, the deemed judgment cannot include interest, and the court cannot amend the deemed judgment to include it. The filing of a Form 45 does not constitute an invocation of the court's ordinary civil jurisdiction. The bankruptcy of one joint debtor does not prevent a creditor from enforcing a costs certificate against the non-bankrupt joint debtor. The problem has been resolved for matters post-1 July 2015 by the Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014 (NSW).
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