In the personal injury case of Mansi v O'Connor & Ors [2012] QSC 374 the Plaintiff was ordered to pay the Defendants’ costs from a specified date despite having succeeded in obtaining judgment against the Defendant for the sum of $93,757.51.

The defendant made a Calderbank offer to the plaintiff a week before trial to pay the plaintiff the sum of $400,000 plus costs. The court held that it was unreasonable for the plaintiff to reject the offer and on this basis ordered that the plaintiff pay all of the defendants’ costs on an indemnity basis from the date the offer was made. The case emphasises the importance of assessing the risks of rejecting an offer of settlement and to take genuine steps to resolve disputes before a case proceeds to trial.