Firestar Enterprises Pty Ltd and Town Of Vincent

Firestar Enterprises Pty Ltd, an applicant, sought review of a decision by the Town of Vincent, the respondent, which required compliance with the Disability (Access to Premises – Buildings) Act 2000 in relation to a building on their property. The Town of Vincent had issued a notice under the Act requiring Firestar to comply with the requirements for disabled access. Firestar challenged the notice in the Civil and Administrative Tribunal, which was resolved when conditional approval was granted for work to remedy the access issue. A condition imposed on the approval was that Firestar would pay the Town of Vincent's costs of the review proceedings. Firestar subsequently sought a review of the condition requiring payment of costs and applied for an order that the Town of Vincent pay the costs of the original proceedings.

The court was required to decide whether the condition requiring payment of costs was valid and if the Town of Vincent's application for costs in the original proceedings should be dismissed. The court found that the condition was invalid because it was not a valid condition of approval under the Act. The court also found that the Town of Vincent's application for costs in the original proceedings should be dismissed because the proceedings had been resolved by agreement and there was no basis for an order for costs.

The court set aside the condition requiring payment of costs and dismissed the Town of Vincent's application for costs in the original proceedings. The court made no order as to costs in relation to the review application. This decision provides guidance on the validity of conditions of approval under the Disability (Access to Premises – Buildings) Act 2000 and the circumstances in which costs may be awarded in proceedings under the Act.