Macedonian Orthodox Church Incorporated v ACT Planning and Land Authority

The Macedonian Orthodox Church Incorporated (the appellant) appealed to the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory (the Court of Appeal) against a decision of Burns J, who had refused leave to appeal an earlier decision of the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT). The dispute concerned the calculation of a change of use charge imposed by the ACT Planning and Land Authority (the respondent) in connection with development approval granted to the appellant. This approval related to variations of leases, including subdivision, variation of the lease purpose clause, and construction works.

The primary legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the value of the lease, for the purpose of calculating the change of use charge, should be determined by reference to the value of the lease *after* the variation, and if so, whether that after-value should take into account the costs of the approved development. The court also considered whether the lease itself required the construction of the approved works, and the significance of the reasons provided for the development approval in determining the lease's value. A preliminary issue concerned the requirement for leave to appeal an interlocutory decision.

The Court of Appeal determined that leave to appeal was a prerequisite for exercising a statutorily limited appeal right. It found that Burns J had erred in refusing leave to appeal the ACAT decision. The court granted leave to appeal to both the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal. However, upon considering the substantive appeal, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, confirming the ACAT's order and the respondent's imposition of a Change of Use Charge of $2,058,750.00. The appellant was ordered to pay the respondent's costs of the appeal and the proceedings before Burns J.