Pursuant to Order 62 subrules 46(1) and (2) of the Federal Court Rules, a Registrar shall have a discretion to decline to give an appointment to tax a bill of costs and instead may have the bill assessed in accordance with subrule (3), which states:
(a) A taxing officer may, in the absence of the parties and without making any determination on the individual items in the bill, make an estimate of the approximate total for which, if the bill were to be taxed, the certificate of taxation would be likely to issue.
(b) The Registrar will notify each party interested in the bill in writing of an estimate made under paragraph (a).
(c) A party interested may, within 21 days after the date of issue of a notice under paragraph (b), file and serve on each other party a notice of objection to the estimate.
(ca) If there is no notice of objection, the amount of the estimate is deemed to be the amount for which a certificate of taxation may be issued.
(cb) If a certificate of taxation has been issued for an amount determined under paragraph (ca), a party that has not received a notice under paragraph (b) may apply by motion to the Court for an order to set aside the certificate of taxation.
(d) The Registrar must not accept a notice of objection for filing unless the party filing the notice pays into the Litigants' Fund an amount of $1 250 as security for the costs of any taxation of the bill.
(e) Where a notice of objection is filed, the Registrar may direct that subrule (4) apply, or that taxation of the bill proceed.”
Ordinarily, when a bill of costs is filed in the Queensland Registry of the Federal Court, the District Registrar will direct that a taxing officer, without making any determination on the individual items in the bill, make an estimate of the approximate total for which, if the bill were to be taxed, the certificate of taxation would be likely to issue.
The District Registrar will endorse on the bill and each copy of it the date on which the taxing officer will make an estimate.
Upon receipt of the service copies of the bill of costs duly endorsed with the date referred to above, the party filing the bill must serve a copy of the bill and the documents mentioned in subrule 40(2) on the other party at least seven (7) days prior to that endorsed date. Order 62 subrule 40(2) provides that:
“There shall be endorsed on the bill a certificate signed by a solicitor verifying the additions in it, and there shall be attached to it or otherwise filed with it in a convenient manner originals or legible copies of receipts for disbursements, or if a disbursement has not been paid, copies of all relevant accounts.”
The party lodging the bill of costs must inform the Registry in writing when the bill has been served in accordance with the above Rules. The parties do not attend before the taxing officer on the date endorsed on the bill as the assessment will be made in the absence of the parties. The parties will receive written notification from the District Registrar of the amount of the estimate.
