Following dismissal of a champerty motion brought by the defendant seeking to stay a libel action as an abuse of process, the court determined the appropriate costs award.
The defendant had argued that the plaintiff should not receive costs because her legal fees were funded by her employer, and that the affected party university had no entitlement to costs.
The court rejected these arguments, holding that third‑party funding does not preclude an award of costs and that the university, as an affected party under Rule 37.07(1) of the Rules of Civil Procedure, was entitled to participate and recover costs.
Applying the Rule 57 factors, including complexity, extensive evidentiary record, and the reasonable expectations of the unsuccessful party, the court fixed partial indemnity costs in favour of both the plaintiff and the university.
