Fawckner & Ors v Department of Natural Resources and Mines

The case of Fawckner & Ors v Department of Natural Resources and Mines involved the valuation of unimproved land under the Valuation of Land Act 1944. The appellants challenged the valuations given by the respondents, the Department of Natural Resources and Mines, which they deemed inadequate. The matter was heard in the Queensland Land Court, with Justice Williams presiding. The court had to decide on the appropriate application of sales evidence to the valuation process, particularly in the context of significant market changes and relativity adjustments.

The primary legal issue was whether the Department appropriately applied sales evidence to determine the unimproved value of the land. The court also had to assess if the Department's approach to relativity adjustments was justified, given the substantial pre-Court reductions in the values. The appellants argued that the sales evidence, reflecting a high volume of sales in the district, warranted a more significant upward adjustment than applied. They further contended that the relativity adjustments should have been revisited due to the pre-Court reductions.

Justice Williams determined that the Department had applied a conservative approach in using sales evidence, considering the unprecedented volume of sales and the factors influencing them. The court found that a full application of the sales evidence was warranted, leading to a more significant upward adjustment than initially proposed. The court also considered the relativity adjustments, noting that the pre-Court reductions had disturbed the existing relativity. The court concluded that a review of the relativity was necessary, and adjustments were made accordingly.

The final orders of the court reflected the adjustments to the land valuations based on the reassessment of sales evidence and relativity. The detailed adjustments were annexed in the schedule attached to the judgment.