Murtagh v Commissioners of Public Works

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Court: Circuit Court
• Judgment Date: 01 January 1939
• Date: 01 January 1939

(S.C.),

Murtagh

and

Commissioners of Public Works

-Arbitration proceedings in Circuit Court - Jurisdiction of the Circuit Court Judge as to costs - Rules of the Circuit Court, Or. XXXIII; Or. XL, rr. 13 and 14 - Consolidated Workmen's Compensation (Ir.) Rules, 1917 (Stat. R. Or., 1917, No. 529), r. 71 -Scale of costs in equity suits - Selection of scale -Jurisdiction to award costs on higher scale -County Officers and Courts (Ireland) Act, 1877 (40 41 Vict., c. 56), ss. 34 and 84 - Rules made under Part II of the Act as to costs in equity suits, r. 4 - Special fee - Jurisdiction to award -Exercise of discretion by Circuit Court Judge -Workmen's Compensation Act, 1934 (No. 9 of1934), s. 37.

The effect of s. 37 of the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1934, and Or. XXXIII of the Rules of the Circuit Court is to make the question of costs in workmen's compensation cases depend on r. 71 of the Consolidated Workmen's Compensation (Ir.) Rules, 1917, and, under that rule, the Circuit Court Judge has jurisdiction to direct that costs be taxed in accordance with any particular scale applicable to equity cases which he may select. The Circuit Court Judge has also jurisdiction under r. 4 of the Rules as to costs in equity cases made pursuant to the provisions of the County Officers and Courts (Ir.) Act, 1877, Part II, to give an additional fee over and above the amount of costs recoverable on the higher equity scale. And, unless he states some reason showing that he was acting on a wrong principle, the discretion of the Circuit Judge ought not to be impugned. So held by the Supreme Court. A workman met with an accident in 1937, and was paid compensation by his employers at the full statutory rate until the 28th July, 1938, when payment was stopped without any reason being given. He accordingly brought proceedings in the Circuit...