Irvine v Bundaberg Regional Council

LAND COURT OF QUEENSLAND

CITATION:

Irvine v Bundaberg Regional Council [2019] QLC 29 *

PARTIES:

Neil Samuel Irvine
(Applicant)

v

Bundaberg Regional Council
(Respondent)

FILE NO:

AQL084-18

DIVISION:

General Division

PROCEEDING:

Determination of compensation under the Acquisition of Land Act 1967

DELIVERED ON:

21 June 2019

DELIVERED AT:

In chambers

HEARD ON:

11, 12 & 13 February 2019
Submissions closed 16 May 2019

HEARD AT:

Brisbane

MEMBER:

PG Stilgoe OAM

ORDERS:

1.     Compensation is determined in the amount of One Hundred and Eighty-One Thousand, Six Hundred Dollars ($181,600.00).

2.     The respondent must pay interest on the compensation to the applicant at a rate of four percent (4%) per annum, on and from 4 November 2016 and ending on and including the day immediately preceding the date on which payment of the compensation is made.

3.     Either party seeking costs may file and serve their written submissions as to costs within fourteen (14) days.

CATCHWORDS:

REAL PROPERTY – COMPULSORY ACQUISITION OF LAND – PROCEEDINGS FOR COMPENSATION – QUEENSLAND – where the constructing authority took a leasehold interest with an option to renew from the applicant – where the applicant ran a skating rink business which relied on volunteer labour and had irregular hours – where the lease terms restricted the permitted use and had relatively onerous terms – where the taken land had a caretaker’s residence – where the accounting experts agreed that the existing business on the taken land had no value – where the valuer experts used a profit rent methodology in their valuations – whether the option term had value – whether the applicant was entitled to compensation for disturbance and/or loss of profits

EVIDENCE – ADMISSIBILITY – OPINION EVIDENCE – EXPERT OPINION – where the valuer experts participated in court managed expert evidence during the preparation of their joint expert report – where the joint expert report did not address all material issues – where subsequent reports to the joint expert report were required to be prepared

Acquisition of Land Act 1967 s 12, s 20, s 28

Commonwealth v Milledge (1953) 90 CLR 157; [1953] HCA 6, considered
Horn v Sunderland Corporation [1941] 2 KB 26, considered
The Minister v The New South Wales Aerated Water and Confectionary Co Limited (1916) 22 CLR 56; [1916] HCA 48, cited

APPEARANCES:

KW Wylie (instructed by Finemore Walters & Story) for the applicant
DD Purcell (instructed by Baker O'Brien Toll Solicitors) for the respondent

1. Lee-Anne Naumann loves the sport of roller skating.[1] In 2002 Lee-Anne’s husband, Neil Irvine, acquired an interest in the roller skating rink in Bundaberg, located within the precincts of what was then the Bundaberg Showgrounds. Together with Mr Irvine’s son Blair, also a roller skating enthusiast, and some volunteers, Lee-Anne operated the skating rink as a family business on weekends from 2010 until its closure in 2016.[2]

   [1]Ex 1, page 5, para 25.3.

   [2]Ex 1, page 4, paras 20 to 21.

1. Mr Irvine acquired his interest in the skating rink…