Defaulted Defendant, Although Getting Remand On Damages, Did Not Show Prevailing Party Status.
Although somewhat intuitive, Justice Fybel in a case involving defaulted defendants confirmed a common sense result where a defaulted defendant, only winning a remand on damages on appeal, claimed he was the prevailing party entitled to routine costs at the trial level.
No way, was the ruling in Total Access Payments, Inc. v. Shaw, Case Nos. G048188/G048302 (4th Dist., Div. 3 Feb. 21, 2014) (unpublished).
Defaulted defendant, being in default, was not permitted to file pleadings. So, the motion to tax costs by plaintiff was unnecessary but defaulted defendant was not a prevailing party even if plaintiff failed to make out a prima facie case for damages.