Noun v Sutherland Shire Council (No 2)

Noun v Sutherland Shire Council (No 2) is a case in which the Applicant sought an order for the Council to pay costs in relation to two separate hearings. The dispute involves the procedural fairness of the way the Council conducted itself during the proceedings. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The legal issues before the court centred on whether the Council's conduct in the proceedings was procedurally fair. This involved examining whether the Council acted in a manner that complied with the principles of natural justice and fairness. Specifically, the court had to determine if the Council's actions in the proceedings were fair and justified, or if they amounted to an abuse of process.

The court found that the Council's conduct in the proceedings was procedurally unfair. The reasoning was that the Council had acted in a manner that was not consistent with the principles of natural justice and fairness. The Council's actions were considered to be an abuse of process, which led to the conclusion that they were not procedurally fair. As a result, the court ordered the Council to pay the Applicant's costs associated with the hearings in question. The orders reflect this outcome, requiring the Council to pay the Applicant's costs of the hearing on 7 April 2011 and the costs of the Applicant's Notice of Motion filed on 11 November 2011, either as agreed or assessed.