A solicitor who lodges a caveat as disclosed agent for a caveator is not personally liable under s 118 of the Transfer of Land Act 1958 (Vic) for compensation for lodging a caveat without reasonable cause. Liability under s 118 is confined to the person claiming an interest in the land who exercises the entitlement to lodge a caveat under s 89(1). The phrase 'any person lodging' in s 118 is a statutory concept, not a factual inquiry. The New Zealand approach in Gordon v Treadwell Stacey Smith, which extended liability to solicitors and others involved in the lodgement process, does not apply in Victoria.
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