EFFICIENT BUILDING TEAM PTY LTD and PERTH RECRUITMENT SERVICES PTY LTD

Efficient Building Team Pty Ltd and Perth Recruitment Services Pty Ltd were involved in a dispute before the State Administrative Tribunal of Western Australia. Efficient, the applicant, alleged that Perth Recruitment, the respondent, had contravened various scheme conduct by-laws under the Strata Titles Act 1985 (WA). Efficient sought orders to compel Perth Recruitment to comply with the by-laws, including removing vehicles from common property, installing barriers to prevent parking, and removing signs encouraging parking in unauthorized areas. Perth Recruitment filed an application to strike out Efficient's claims and objected to any amendments to the orders sought by Efficient. The Tribunal had to decide whether to strike out certain claims, grant leave to amend the application, and determine the appropriate orders to resolve the dispute.

The primary legal issues involved the Tribunal's discretionary powers under sections 47(5) and 200 of the State Administrative Tribunal Act 2004 (WA). The Tribunal had to assess whether its discretion to make orders for contraventions of by-laws and to resolve disputes was limited by any mandatory considerations. The court referenced previous cases, such as Minister for Immigration and Citizenship v Li and Kruger & Ors v The Commonwealth of Australia, which established that while statutory discretions are broad, they must be exercised reasonably and within the scope of the statutory scheme. The Tribunal needed to ensure that its decisions were legally reasonable and aligned with the purpose of the Strata Titles Act.

In its decision, the Tribunal concluded that the discretion conferred by sections 47(5) and 200 of the State Administrative Tribunal Act was not limited by mandatory considerations but was constrained by the need for legal reasonableness. The Tribunal determined that it must exercise its powers within the scope and purpose of the statutory scheme, which includes finding facts and considering all relevant matters. The Tribunal granted leave for Efficient to amend its application, modifying certain orders to better reflect the relief sought. The Tribunal struck out claims for specific contraventions of by-laws but left other claims to be determined at a final hearing. The matter was adjourned to schedule a final hearing for the remaining claims.

The final orders required Perth Recruitment to cease parking and permit parking on common property, remove signs encouraging unauthorized parking, install barriers to prevent parking in unauthorized areas, remove waste items from common property, and remove a carport within 45 days. The Tribunal's decision underscored the importance of exercising statutory discretions reasonably and within the confines of the relevant statutory scheme.