Andrade v Pittwater Council

Case [2015] NSWLEC 1382


Land and Environment Court


New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Andrade v Pittwater Council [2015] NSWLEC 1382
Hearing dates:Conciliation conference on 8 July 2015
Date of orders: 22 September 2015
Decision date: 22 September 2015
Jurisdiction:Class 1
Before: Fakes C
Decision:

See (4) below

Catchwords: BUILDING CERTIFICATE: Brush fence; conciliation conference; agreement between the parties; orders
Legislation Cited: Land and Environment Court Act 1979
Category:Principal judgment
Parties: Craig Andrade (Applicant)
Pittwater Council (Respondent)
Representation:

Counsel:
Mr M Staunton (Applicant)
Mr A Stafford (Respondent)

Solicitors:
King & Wood Mallesons (Respondent)
File Number(s):10323 of 2015

Judgment

  1. COMMISSIONER: In this matter, at or after a conciliation conference, an agreement under s 34(3) of the Land and Environment Court Act 1979 (the Court Act) was reached between the parties as to the terms of a decision in the proceedings that was acceptable to the parties. As the presiding Commissioner, I was satisfied that the decision was one that the Court could have made in the proper exercise of its functions (this being the test applied by s 34(3) of the Court Act). As a consequence, s 34(3)(a) of the Act required me to “dispose of the proceedings in accordance with the decision”.

  2. The Court Act also required me to “set out in writing the terms of the decision” (s 34(3)(b)). The orders made to give effect to the agreement constitute that document.

  3. In making the orders to give effect to the agreement between the parties, I was not required to, and have not, made any merit assessment of the issues that were originally in dispute between the parties.

  4. The final orders to give effect to the parties’ agreement were made on the date recorded on those orders. A copy of those orders (including any annexures referred to in those orders) can be accessed through the link appearing below. The date of the orders appears on the first page of the orders.

…………….

Judy Fakes

Commissioner

10323 of 2015 s 34 orders (6.94 KB, pdf)

Details
AGLC
Andrade v Pittwater Council [2015] NSWLEC 1382
Case
[2015] NSWLEC 1382
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In Andrade v Pittwater Council, the plaintiff, Andrade, sought a declaration that a decision by the Pittwater Council to grant a permit to build a house on a parcel of land was unlawful. The dispute centred around the application of local zoning laws and the discretionary powers of the council. The case was heard by the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales.

The legal issues before the court included whether the council had correctly exercised its discretion in granting the permit, and whether the decision was in accordance with the relevant planning and zoning laws. The court needed to determine if the council had properly considered all relevant factors and whether there was any procedural unfairness in the decision-making process.

The court examined the council's decision-making process and found that the council had not adequately considered the impact of the proposed building on the surrounding environment and the character of the neighbourhood. The court held that the council had failed to properly exercise its discretion and that the decision was therefore unlawful. As a result, the court granted the declaration sought by the plaintiff.

The final orders of the court were that the decision of the Pittwater Council to grant the permit was quashed, and the court declared that the council's decision was unlawful. The matter was remitted back to the council for reconsideration in accordance with the court's findings.

Orders

Orders of the court

See (4) below

Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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