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The NSW District Court has found in favour of a Sydney-based law firm in a dispute concerning the recovery of unpaid legal fees.
Rockwall Homes (Rockwall) has been ordered by Judge Kevin Andronos SC of the NSW District Court to pay One Group Legal (OGL) over $100,000 in unpaid legal fees and interest, with a further $35,000 held in court released to the firm.
Both parties provided affidavits from their directors and employees to support their cases, with the court finding that Rockwall’s director was not entirely reliable because he forgot important details and sometimes contradicted himself.
The dispute arose after Rockwall failed to pay OGL for legal services provided under five costs agreements, leading the firm to commence proceedings to recover the outstanding fees.
Rockwall requested the court to change its defence to raise new arguments about OGL’s compliance with legal costs rules and challenge the deed of release.
The court rejected the original proposal because it was made too late, lacked supporting evidence, and would consequently result in further delays and costs for OGL.
OGL entered into five costs agreements with Rockwall between 2019 and 2022, and the court found the home building company liable for the unpaid legal fees under those agreements.
Judge Andronos deemed that Rockwall had to pay the outstanding fees under the first costs agreement for the original NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) proceedings brought by two individuals against Rockwall, and the second costs agreement for the appeal, as its arguments against payment were not successful.
It was found that Rockwall had to pay the outstanding $14,340.69 under the third costs agreement for the legal proceedings brought against it by another individual, with there being no agreement to reduce the original invoice.
Rejecting arguments that the legal fees were inflated or that the company never received the agreement, Judge Andronos ruled that Rockwall was required to pay a remaining $3,935 owed under the fourth costs agreement involving legal proceedings initiated by another individual.
Judge Andronos found that Rockwall had to pay the outstanding $51,275.03 under the fifth costs agreement for the NCAT proceedings brought against it by another individual, claiming that “there was no reciprocal release by OGL of Rockwall”.
Rockwall’s director gave evidence, arguing that OGL had agreed to waive its fees because of their friendship and ongoing business relationship, with the court rejecting this notion, finding that there was no legally binding agreement, but rather just a general intention that the firm would “look after” Rockwall.
OGL’s representative submitted that “the present claim is a claim in debt, not in damages”, meaning goods and services tax (GST) should be included because of the unpaid fees related to legal services provided to Rockwall.
The court accepted this argument and ruled that the amount owed would include GST, after Judge Andronos invited both parties to make submissions on whether any judgment in favour of the firm would include interest.
Judge Andronos stated that “there is no reason” for OGL not to have interest recovered under s100 of the Civil Procedure Act 2005, ordering Rockwall to pay a total of $100,118.04, which included unpaid legal fees and interest, plus legal costs, $35,000 previously deposited with the court being paid out to OGL to satisfy part of the debt.
The court ordered Rockwall to also pay OGL’s costs of the proceedings, as agreed or assessed on the ordinary basis.
Citation: One Group Legal Pty Limited v Rockwall Homes Pty Limited [2026] NSWDC 404 (27 October 2026)
