Mr Justice A. Ford of the Nuku'alofa Supreme Court, on November 17 passed a decision over a dispute over Taxation of Cost.

Judge Ford awarded the Plaintiff, a retired Minister of Justice, Tevita Tupou, who was his own legal counsel, a fixed cost entitlement of $1,250, and ordered him to pay the defendants' counsel the net figure of $3,234.

The dispute over Taxation of Cost followed an Interlocutory Hearing in Supreme Court after the plaintiff filed an application seeking an order denying the defendants, on two separate defamation cases, the right to trial by jury. The defendants in one case were Sangster Saulala, Anna Tupou and Masao Paasi and the other case were Semisi Kailahi, Sangster Saulala and OBN Television.

Mr Justice Ford said in his written decision that on 21 July 2004 he upheld an application by the defendants for the two cases to be tried by jury and awarded the costs to the successful defendants in a sum to either be agreed or taxed. He said that an agreement was not possible and so on 30 September 2004 he conducted a taxation hearing in Chambers.