Farrugia v City of Parramatta Council

Case [2018] NSWLEC 1690


Land and Environment Court


New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Farrugia v City of Parramatta Council [2018] NSWLEC 1690
Hearing dates: 13 December 2018
Date of orders: 24 December 2018
Decision date: 24 December 2018
Jurisdiction:Class 1
Before: O’Neill C
Decision:

See [6] below

Catchwords: DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION: conciliation conference; agreement between the parties.
Legislation Cited: Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979
Land and Environment Court Act 1979
Category:Principal judgment
Parties: David Anthony Farrugia (Applicant)
City of Parramatta Council (Respondent)
Representation:

Counsel:
P Clay SC (Applicant)

  Solicitors:
Macquarie Lawyers (Applicant)
A Gough, Storey & Gough Lawyers (Respondent)
File Number(s): 2018/176520
Publication restriction: No

Judgment

  1. COMMISSIONER: This is an appeal pursuant to the provisions of s 8.7(1) of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EPA Act) against the refusal by the City of Parramatta Council (the Council) of Development Application No. 919/2017 for the construction of a two-storey dwelling with a detached double garage (the proposal) at 6A Lansdowne Street, Parramatta.

  2. The Court arranged a conciliation conference under s 34AA(2)(a) of the Land and Environment Court Act 1979 (LEC Act) between the parties, which has been held on 13 December 2018. I presided over the conciliation conference.

  3. At the conciliation conference, the parties reached agreement as to the terms of a decision in the proceedings that would be acceptable to the parties, based on amendments made to the proposal.

  4. Under s 34(3) of the LEC Act, I must dispose of the proceedings in accordance with the parties’ decision, if the parties’ decision is a decision that the Court could have made in the proper exercise of its functions. The parties’ decision involves the Court exercising the function under s 4.16 of the EPA Act to grant consent to the Development Application.

  5. I am satisfied that the parties’ decision is one that the Court could have made in the proper exercise of its functions. I have considered the effect of the proposal on the heritage significance of the heritage conservation area pursuant to cl 5.10(4) of the Parramatta Local Environmental Plan 2011 and I am satisfied that the amendments made to the form of the roof results in a proposal that successfully respects the established scale of the heritage conservation area. As the parties’ decision is a decision that the Court could have made in the proper exercise of its functions, I am required under s 34(3) of the LEC Act to dispose of the proceedings in accordance with the parties’ decision.

Orders

  1. The orders of the Court are:

  1. The applicant is granted leave to amend the application, to rely on the documentation listed at condition 1 of the conditions of consent at Annexure A.

  2. The appeal is upheld.

  3. Development Application No. 919/2017 for the construction of a two-storey dwelling with a detached double garage at 6A Lansdowne Street, Parramatta, is approved, subject to the conditions of consent at Annexure A.

____________

Susan O’Neill

Commissioner of the Court

Annexure A (196 KB, pdf)

Annexure B (4.09 MB, pdf)

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Details
AGLC
Farrugia v City of Parramatta Council [2018] NSWLEC 1690
Case
[2018] NSWLEC 1690
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court was an appeal brought by the respondent, City of Parramatta Council, against an earlier decision of the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales. The appellant, Mr Farrugia, had sought an order for the council to grant him a Certificate of Title for certain land. The council had refused to issue the certificate on the basis that the land did not meet the requirements for certification under the relevant statute. The dispute centred on the interpretation and application of the Real Property Act 1900 (NSW) and the relevant local council by-laws.

The central legal issue was whether the council's refusal to grant Mr Farrugia a Certificate of Title was justified under the statute and the council's by-laws. The court had to determine if the land in question met the criteria for certification as outlined in the Real Property Act and whether the council had acted within its statutory powers in refusing to grant the certificate. Another key point of contention was whether the council had provided adequate reasons for its decision, as required by the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act 1977 (NSW).

In assessing the matter, the court examined the statutory provisions and council by-laws relevant to the certification of land. It considered whether the land met the necessary conditions for certification and whether the council had correctly applied those conditions. The court also evaluated the adequacy of the reasons provided by the council for its decision. Ultimately, the court found that the council's refusal to grant the certificate was not supported by the relevant legislation and that the council had not adequately explained its decision. Consequently, the court allowed the appeal and remitted the matter to the council for reconsideration in light of the court's findings.

Orders

Orders of the court

See [6] 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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