The plaintiffs, having been wholly successful in their breach of contract action for a real estate commission, sought substantial indemnity costs from the date of their offer to settle and full indemnity costs based on the defendants' bad faith.
The defendants conceded entitlement to partial indemnity costs to the offer date and substantial indemnity thereafter but challenged the quantum and the claim for full indemnity.
The court, applying Rule 57.01 factors and the principle of proportionality, found the plaintiffs' claimed hours to be disproportionate to the complexity and duration of the four-day trial.
Full indemnity costs were denied as the defendants' conduct during litigation did not meet the threshold for reprehensible behavior.
The court significantly reduced the claimed hours for various litigation stages and fixed the plaintiffs' costs at $191,500 plus HST for fees and $6,850.43 plus HST for disbursements, along with prejudgment interest.
