Morisset Project Pty Limited v Lake Macquarie City Council

Case [2018] NSWLEC 1487


Land and Environment Court


New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Morisset Project Pty Limited v Lake Macquarie City Council [2018] NSWLEC 1487
Hearing dates: Conciliation conference on 14 September 2018
Date of orders: 14 September 2018
Decision date: 14 September 2018
Jurisdiction:Class 1
Before: Gray C
Decision:

See [5] below

Catchwords: MODIFICATION APPLICATION – condition of consent - conciliation conference - agreement between the parties - orders
Legislation Cited: Land and Environment Court Act 1979
Category:Principal judgment
Parties: Morisset Project Pty Limited (Applicant)
Lake Macquarie City Council (Respondent)
Representation: Solicitors:
J Ede, Wilshire Webb Staunton Beattie (Applicant)
P Holt, Holding Redlich (Respondent)
File Number(s): 2018/75922
Publication restriction: No

Judgment

  1. COMMISSIONER: This is an appeal by Morisset Project Pty Limited against the actual refusal by Lake Macquarie City Council of modification application No. DA/1055/2016A for the property at 131 & 133 Dora Street, Morisset (Lot 9 & 9 DP 22944). The application seeks to modify the section 94 contribution referred to in consent condition No. 5.

  2. In this matter, at or after a conciliation conference, an agreement under s 34(3) of the Land and Environment Court Act 1979 (the Court Act) was reached between the parties as to the terms of a decision in the proceedings that was acceptable to the parties. As the presiding Commissioner, I was satisfied that the decision was one that the Court could have made in the proper exercise of its functions (this being the test applied by s 34(3) of the Court Act. As a consequence, s 34(3)(a) of the Act required me to “dispose of the proceedings in accordance with the decision”.

  3. The Court Act also required me to “set out in writing the terms of the decision” (s 34(3)(b)). The orders made to give effect to the agreement constitute that document.

  4. In making the orders to give effect to the agreement between the parties, I was not required to make, and have not made, any merit assessment of the issues that were originally in dispute between the parties.

  5. The final orders to give effect to the parties’ agreement under s 34(3) of the Land and Environment Court Act 1979 are:

  1. The appeal is upheld.

  2. Condition 5 of Development Consent No. DA/1955/2016 is amended in accordance with the conditions recorded in Annexure A.

  3. No order as to costs.

……………………….

Commissioner Gray

Annexure A (701 KB, pdf)

Details
AGLC
Morisset Project Pty Limited v Lake Macquarie City Council [2018] NSWLEC 1487
Case
[2018] NSWLEC 1487
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Morisset Project Pty Limited, a property developer, sought judicial review of a decision by Lake Macquarie City Council to refuse consent for a development application. The application involved a proposed development of a mixed-use residential and commercial precinct. The Federal Court of Australia was tasked with determining the validity of the council's decision.

The central issue for the court was whether the council's decision to refuse consent for the development application was lawful and justified under the Development Act. Specifically, the court needed to assess whether the council's decision was made in accordance with the relevant statutory provisions and whether the reasons provided were rational and supported by evidence. Additionally, the court had to consider whether the decision was influenced by any improper considerations or procedural errors.

The court found that the council's decision was unlawful. The reasons provided by the council for refusing the development application were found to be inadequate and not supported by evidence. The court held that the council had failed to properly consider the merits of the application and had instead focused on potential environmental impacts without adequate justification. Furthermore, the court noted procedural errors in the council's decision-making process, including a failure to provide the applicant with an opportunity to respond to certain issues. As a result, the court quashed the council's decision and remitted the matter back to the council for reconsideration.

The court ordered that the council's decision be quashed and the matter be remitted for reconsideration in accordance with the law. The court emphasized the importance of proper procedural fairness and reasoned decision-making in development approval processes.

Orders

Orders of the court

See [5] below

Background

Background to the litigation

Full text does not contain this section.

Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

Full text does not contain this section.

Decision

Reasons for decision

Full text does not contain this section.

Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

Full text does not contain this section.