Carson v Turner

Carson brought an application for judicial review of a decision made by the Building Appeals Board, which had overturned a decision of the Magistrates’ Court that required Turner to comply with a building order. The Supreme Court was required to determine whether the Building Appeals Board had the power to remit the matter back to the Municipal Building Surveyor, and whether such a decision was an abuse of process or an error of law. The central issue was whether the Board had acted beyond its jurisdiction by overturning the Magistrates’ Court’s decision and remitting the matter to the Municipal Building Surveyor.

The Court found that the Building Appeals Board had the power to remit a matter back to the Municipal Building Surveyor where it was appropriate to do so. However, in this case, the Court found that the Board had made an error of law by remitting the matter to the Municipal Building Surveyor. The Board had effectively attempted to re-litigate the matter, which was an abuse of process and a jurisdictional error. The Court considered that the Building Appeals Board had acted beyond its jurisdiction by overturning the Magistrates’ Court’s decision and remitting the matter to the Municipal Building Surveyor. The Court also found that the Supreme Court had the jurisdiction to control abuse of process.

The Court quashed the decision of the Building Appeals Board and remitted the matter to the Magistrates’ Court for reconsideration in light of the Court’s findings. The Court found that the Building Appeals Board had acted beyond its jurisdiction by overturning the Magistrates’ Court’s decision and remitting the matter to the Municipal Building Surveyor. The Court also found that the Supreme Court had the jurisdiction to control abuse of process.