ON APPEAL FROM WANDSWORTH COUNTY COURT
(MR RECORDER WHITE)
Royal Courts of Justice
Strand
London, WC2
B E F O R E:
LORD JUSTICE MAY
LORD JUSTICE WALL
IN THE MATTER OF C (CHILDREN)
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THE APPELLANT APPEARED IN PERSON.
THE RESPONDENT DID NOT APPEAR AND WAS NOT REPRESENTED.
J U D G M E N T
LORD JUSTICE MAY: This is a renewed application which Mr C makes for permission to appeal against a costs order made by Mr Recorder White on 31 August 2005 in family proceedings. The subject matter of that application was related to the children’s schooling. The application failed and Mr C does not now seek to argue that the substantive decision that the recorder made was wrong. He does, however, seek permission to appeal the costs order. As I understand it, in matters such as this in family proceedings, costs orders are not generally made, see Re T (Order for costs) [2005] EWCA Civ 311 unless the court regards it as an exceptional case where one or other of the parties has behaved quite unreasonably. The Recorder in essence came to that conclusion. Wall LJ has refused permission to appeal on the papers. The matter came before him and Coleridge J on a previous occasion when the matter was adjourned for further material to be provided.
I have reached the conclusion with some hesitation, but nevertheless, that Mr C’s argument and submission that on the facts as they were in August 2005, it was not unreasonable for him to have brought the application is reasonably arguable. I say no more than that, but it seems to me that he does cross the threshold of arguability for the purpose of giving permission to appeal and I would give him such permission.
I would, however, add this: as I read the papers, the amount of costs in issue is £6,939. Now that is not an insignificant sum in the scheme of things, except that it is a really rather small sum in relation to the potential costs that might hereafter be spent on a full blown appeal to this court. I would, in those circumstances, strongly urge all those concerned on both sides to try to reach an accommodation in this respect. It seems to me that it is almost certainly a case where an accommodation would be less expensive for the parties than fighting the thing out in this court. I trust that Mr C will take appropriate steps to convey that point in utterly neutral terms to those acting for Mrs C. For those reasons, I would give permission in this case.
LORD JUSTICE WALL: For the reasons my Lord has given, I agree that permission should be given.
Order: Application granted.