Judicial Review Act 1991

If an application (the costs application) is made to the court by a person (the relevant applicant) who—

has made a review application; or

has been made a party to a review application under section 28; or

is otherwise a party to a review application and is not the person whose decision, conduct, or failure to make a decision or perform a duty according to law, is the subject of the application;

that another party to the review application indemnify the relevant applicant in relation to the costs properly incurred in the review application by the relevant applicant, on a party and party basis, from the time the costs application was made; or

that a party to the review application is to bear only that party’s own costs of the proceeding, regardless of the outcome of the proceeding.

In considering the costs application, the court is to have regard to—

the financial resources of—

the relevant applicant; or

any person associated with the relevant applicant who has an interest in the outcome of the proceeding; and

whether the proceeding involves an issue that affects, or may affect, the public interest, in addition to any personal right or interest of the relevant applicant; and

if the relevant applicant is a person mentioned in subsection (1)(a)—whether the proceeding discloses a reasonable basis for the review application; and

if the relevant applicant is a person mentioned in subsection (1)(b) or (c)—whether the case in the review application of the relevant applicant can be supported on a reasonable basis.

The court may, at any time, of its own motion or on the application of a party, having regard to—

any conduct of the relevant applicant (including, if the relevant applicant is the applicant in the review application, any failure to prosecute the proceeding with due diligence); or

any significant change affecting the matters mentioned in subsection (2);

Subject to this section, the rules of court made in relation to the awarding of costs apply to a proceeding arising out of a review application.

An appeal may be brought from an order under this section only with the leave of the Court of Appeal.

In this section—

an application for a statutory order of review under section 20, 21 or 22; or

an application for review under section 43; or

an appeal to the Court of Appeal in relation to an order made by the court on an application mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b).