Minister for the Environment v Lucky S Fishing Pty Ltd

In the case of Minister for the Environment v Lucky S Fishing Pty Ltd, the Minister for the Environment brought an action against Lucky S Fishing Pty Ltd for contravening the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) by engaging in commercial fishing activities in the Ningaloo Marine Reserve. The court was required to determine the appropriate penalty for the corporation's admitted contravention of the Act.

The court considered the nature and extent of the contravention, the circumstances in which the contravention took place, and whether the corporation had previously been found by the Court to have engaged in similar conduct. The court found that Lucky S Fishing Pty Ltd had engaged in commercial fishing activities in a Commonwealth Marine Reserve where such activities were absolutely prohibited. The court also found that the contravention was inadvertent and that the corporation had not derived any financial benefit from the contravention.

The court imposed a pecuniary penalty of $34,650 on Lucky S Fishing Pty Ltd for the contravention of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth). The court also ordered that the corporation pay the Minister's costs of the proceeding fixed as a lump sum in the amount of $45,000.

In summary, the court found that Lucky S Fishing Pty Ltd had contravened the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) by engaging in commercial fishing activities in the Ningaloo Marine Reserve. The court imposed a pecuniary penalty of $34,650 and ordered that the corporation pay the Minister's costs of the proceeding in the amount of $45,000.