Part 1: Tribunals and Inquiries Schedule 3 Section 29: Costs or expenses
164.The powers of many tribunals to award costs are currently limited, either because they have no such powers, or because the scope of any power they have is limited. This section grants the tribunals the discretion to order costs and expenses in the same way as courts. It is not intended that these provisions will apply in all jurisdictions, rather that there will be flexibility as part of the creation of the new system to determine where a costs regime would be appropriate and whether there should be any limits to such a regime (for example, that costs should be awarded only against a party who has acted vexatiously or unreasonably). Subsection (1) is subject to provision made under the Tribunal Procedure Rules so as to allow for such flexibility.