Independent Newspapers will face a bill for legal costs estimated to be about £450,000 following Mr De Rossa's successful action. Mr Justice Carney yesterday awarded costs of the action to Mr De Rossa, meaning that Independent Newspapers will have to pay all the costs of both legal teams for the 11-day hearing.
A legal source estimated that the costs each day for each legal team were £20,000. There were two senior counsel on each side, as well as junior counsel, and there would also be solicitors' fees.
The judge reserved the question of costs of the second action last March in which the jury failed to agree and was discharged. The total costs of that 14-day trial and a number of pre-trial applications were estimated at £300,000 for each side. The costs will be decided by Mr Justice Carney at a date to be fixed.
Following the eight-day aborted trial last November, costs estimated at nearly £200,000 for each side for that hearing were awarded against Independent Newspapers.