ISPT Pty Ltd v Valuer General

ISPT Pty Ltd appealed to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against a decision of the Valuer General concerning the valuation of land. The core of the dispute revolved around whether the Valuer General had made errors of law in determining the value of the subject land, specifically in relation to the use and adjustment of comparable sales.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine three principal questions of law. First, whether the Valuer General erred in finding that certain sales were not comparable, and if so, whether this constituted a question of law. Second, whether the Valuer General wrongly rejected "retail demographic evidence" when assessing comparability. Third, whether the Valuer General erred in the adjustment of a comparable sale by failing to deduct the "value of leases" from its sale price.

Regarding the first issue, the Court held that a finding that sales were not comparable did not, in itself, involve a question of law. On the second issue, the Court found no error in the rejection of retail demographic evidence, as the comparable sale ultimately considered was found to be subject to the same demographic influences. Concerning the third issue, the Court clarified that the Valuer General was not required to deduct the "value of leases" but rather the value of the income stream from those leases, or alternatively, the value of lease income for a letting-up period. The Court concluded that the Valuer General's approach to this adjustment did not involve a question of law.

Consequently, the appeals were dismissed with costs.