Land and Environment Court
New South Wales
Medium Neutral Citation: Fiona Hughes v Northern Beaches Council [2016] NSWLEC 1384 Hearing dates: Conciliation conference on 25 & 26 August 2016 Date of orders: 26 August 2016 Decision date: 26 August 2016 Jurisdiction: Class 1 Before: Chilcott C Decision: See (4) below
Catchwords: DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION: conciliation conference; agreement between the parties; orders Legislation Cited: Land and Environment Court Act 1979 Category: Principal judgment Parties: FIONA HUGHES (Applicant 1)
LINCOLN TWINE (Applicant 2)
NORTHERN BEACHES COUNCIL (Respondent)Representation: Mr V Conomos, Conomos Legal (Applicant)
Mr S Patterson, Wilshire Webb Staunton Beattie (Respondent)
File Number(s): 2016/162908 Publication restriction: No
Judgment
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COMMISSIONER: In this matter, at or after a conciliation conference, an agreement under s 34(3) of the Land and Environment Court Act 1979 (the Court Act) was reached between the parties as to the terms of a decision in the proceedings that was acceptable to the parties. As the presiding Commissioner, I was satisfied that the decision was one that the Court could have made in the proper exercise of its functions (this being the test applied by s 34(3) of the Court Act). As a consequence, s 34(3)(a) of the Act required me to “dispose of the proceedings in accordance with the decision”.
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The Court Act also required me to “set out in writing the terms of the decision” (s 34(3)(b)). The orders made to give effect to the agreement constitute that document.
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In making the orders to give effect to the agreement between the parties, I was not required to, and have not, made any merit assessment of the issues that were originally in dispute between the parties.
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The final orders to give effect to the parties’ agreement under s34(3) of the Land and Environment Court Act 1979 are:
The Applicant is given leave to amend the development application by substituting the following plans as the plans relied upon for the purposes of the development application:
Drawing No.
Issue
Dated
Prepared By
0776_DA_01-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
0776_DA_02-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
0776_DA_05-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
0776_DA_06-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
0776_DA_07-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
0776_DA_08-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
0776_DA_09-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
0776_DA_11-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
0776_DA_13-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
0776_DA_18-B
Court issue
25 August 2016
CSquared Architects Pty Ltd
The appeal is upheld.
Development consent is granted to Development Application No. DA 2015/1303 for the demolition of existing development and the erection of a new dwelling house at 29 Robertson Road, North Curl Curl NSW, subject to the conditions annexed to this Agreement at “A” and the amended plans annexed to this Agreement at “B”.
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Commissioner Chilcott
162908.16 Chilcott (C) Annexure A (365 KB, pdf)
162908.16 Chilcott (C) Annexure B - Plans (7.63 MB, pdf)
- AGLC
- Fiona Hughes v Northern Beaches Council [2016] NSWLEC 1384
- Case
- [2016] NSWLEC 1384
- Decision Date
CaseChat Overview and Summary
The primary legal issues before the court were whether the council had a duty of care towards Ms Hughes as a visitor to the pool, and if so, whether they breached that duty. The court also had to determine if the council was negligent in failing to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm. Additionally, the court considered whether the statutory obligations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act were applicable and if the council breached those obligations.
The court found that the council did owe Ms Hughes a duty of care, given the public nature of the pool and the council's role in maintaining public facilities. It was determined that the council had indeed breached this duty by failing to adequately warn of the wet surface or to ensure that the area was safe for public use. The council's failure to take reasonable steps to prevent the foreseeable risk of slipping was also held to be negligent. The court further held that the council breached its statutory obligations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, which required them to provide and maintain a safe environment for all visitors. Consequently, the council's negligence and breach of statutory duty were affirmed.
The Supreme Court awarded Ms Hughes damages for her injuries, which included compensation for pain and suffering, medical expenses, and loss of earnings. The court's judgment emphasised the importance of public authorities taking proactive measures to ensure the safety of visitors to public facilities.
Orders
Orders of the court
See (4) 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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