(1) |
In any arbitration proceedings, the commissioner may make an order for the payment of costs according to the requirements of law and fairness and when doing so should have regard to— |
(a) |
the measure of success that the parties achieved; |
(b) |
considerations of fairness that weigh in favour of or against granting a cost order; |
(c) |
any with prejudice offers that were made with a view to settling the dispute; |
(d) |
whether a party or the person who represented that party in the arbitration proceedings acted in a frivolous and vexatious manner — |
(i) |
by proceeding with or defending the dispute in the arbitration proceedings, or |
(ii) in its conduct during the arbitration proceedings;
(e) |
the effect that a cost order may have on a continued employment relationship; |
(f) |
any agreement concluded between the parties to the arbitration concerning the basis on which costs should be awarded; |
(g) |
the importance of the issues raised during the arbitration to the parties as well as to the labour community at large; |
(h) |
any other relevant factors. |
(2) |
A commissioner may make an award of costs in favour of a party who appears or is represented in arbitration by a person contemplated in rule 25(1)(a) in respect of reasonable disbursements actually incurred in the conduct of its case in the arbitration. A commissioner who makes an award in terms of this provision must specify clearly the items and amounts in respect of which costs are ordered. |
(3) |
A commissioner may make an award of costs in respect of the legal fees of a party that is represented in an arbitration by a legal practitioner or candidate attorney, only if the other parties to the arbitration were represented by a legal practitioner or candidate attorney. |
(4) |
An award for costs in respect of a legal practitioner as per sub-rule (3) must be in the amount of — |
(a) |
in respect of the first day of an arbitration (including any arbitration concluded in a single hearing) – R7 000-00 (VAT inclusive); |
(b) |
in respect of each additional day of an arbitration – R4 700-00 (VAT inclusive). |
(5) An award for costs in respect of a candidate attorney must be 50 percent of the amount set out in sub-rule (4).