Apperly (Public Officer of the Australian Mutual Provident Society) v Federal Commissioner of Land Tax

The appellant, Apperly, the public officer of the Australian Mutual Provident Society (AMP), appealed to the High Court of Australia against an assessment of land tax made by the Federal Commissioner of Land Tax. The dispute concerned the valuation of land owned by AMP, which was subject to a building lease.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the unimproved value of the land, for the purposes of the Land Tax Assessment Act 1910 (Cth), should be assessed on the basis of its value as vacant land or as land subject to the terms of the building lease. Specifically, the court had to determine how the existence of the lease, which obligated the lessee to erect buildings, affected the unimproved value of the land.

The High Court held that the unimproved value of the land should be determined as if it were not subject to the lease. The court reasoned that the "unimproved value" in the context of the Act referred to the value of the land itself, without regard to any improvements or encumbrances, including leases. The existence of the building lease, and the obligations it imposed, were considered matters that affected the improved value or the value of the reversion, but not the unimproved value of the land as defined by the legislation. The court applied the principle that the unimproved value is the value of the land in its natural state, or as if it were still in its natural state, irrespective of any contractual arrangements concerning its development or use.

The appeal was dismissed, and the assessment of land tax by the Commissioner was upheld.