The question of who pays the substantial legal costs arising from the High Court case taken by Nikita Hand against wealthy mixed martial arts celebrity Conor McGregor and his friend, James Lawrence, could be complicated by different findings made by the jury concerning each man.
Ms Hand sought damages for assault — this being rape — against both men. The jury found she had been assaulted by Mr McGregor but not by Mr Lawrence. They awarded her damages of €248,603, against Mr McGregor.
The legal costs in the case, where each of the parties was represented by senior and junior counsel, are estimated to be in the region of €1.5 million and the general rule is that costs follow the event, meaning the losing party is responsible for their costs and those of the person to whom they lost.
On that basis, Mr McGregor would have to pay his costs and some or most of Ms Hand’s, while she would be responsible for Mr Lawrence’s costs and some of her own. Ms Hand may have an arrangement with her legal team as to how much they would be paid, by her, depending on the outcome of the proceedings.
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It is not difficult to imagine a costs order in Mr Lawrence’s favour involving a figure similar in size to the damages awarded to Ms Hand, in which case she could end up being no better off financially as a result of her legal action, even though she won in her central claim that she had been assaulted by Mr McGregor.
But the public, and Mr Justice Alexander Owens, who presided over the trial and will decide the costs issue, have yet to hear the probably complex arguments that will be made by all sides on Thursday when the issue is to be considered by the court.
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The judge has discretion about the orders he makes and may decide not to order that Ms Hand pay Mr Lawrence’s costs once he hears from all sides. It is possible that the question will not be resolved this Thursday and the judge will reserve his decision to a later date.
During the trial, Mr McGregor said he was paying his friend’s legal costs. Whether that will have any bearing on what the judge decides is unclear. Likewise, it remains to be seen if anything about how the proceedings and the evidence unfolded will influence the judge’s decision.
Ms Hand’s claim against Mr Lawrence arose after he told investigating gardaí she had sex with him after Mr McGregor had left the Beacon Hotel. The claim of assault against Mr Lawrence was on the basis that she did not give consent. In her evidence she said she had no memory of having sex with Mr Lawrence — Ms Hand had been taking alcohol and cocaine — and that it was a “made-up story”.
Over the weekend Mr McGregor published several comments on social media where he appeared to defame Ms Hand and attack the integrity of the High Court. Whether these remarks, since deleted, will be raised at Thursday’s hearing remains to be seen. How they would be relevant to the issue of costs is not clear. The civil courts can jail people who they find have acted in contempt of the court. Likewise, people who believe they have been defamed can take civil actions seeking damages.
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