Federal Court of Australia
Notices to practitioners issued by the Queensland District Registrar   back

Order 62 bills of costs
(Q4 - September 2001)

NB: This Notice to Practitioners is superseded by Order 62 Bills of costs dated 23 February 2005

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 sub-rule 3 which states:-

  1. 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 appropriate total for which, if the bill were to be taxed, the certificate of taxation would be likely to issue;
  2. The Registrar will notify each party interested in the bill in writing of an estimate made under paragraph (a);
  3. In accordance with Order 62 sub-rule 46(2A) the Registrar must endorse the bill and each copy of it with the date when the taxing officer is to make an estimate and return the bill and copies to the party filing the bill and the party filing the bill must serve a copy of the bill and the documents mentioned in sub-rule 40(2) on each other party to the assessment at least 7 days before the date endorsed on the bill.

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 the date on which it will be considered by the taxing officer under Order 62 subrule 46(3)(a).

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 the bill on the other party at least 7 days prior to that endorsed date. In addition, the endorsement and attachments required by Order 46 rule 40(2) must also be served on the other party. Order 46 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 adding machine or computer slips or working papers together with originals or legible copies of receipts or 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 are not required to 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 registry of the amount of the estimate.

District Registrar
September 2001