Land and Environment Court
New South Wales
Medium Neutral Citation: Piaskowski v Pittwater Council [2015] NSWLEC 1183 Hearing dates: Conciliation conference on 14 May 2015 Date of orders: 26 May 2015 Decision date: 26 May 2015 Jurisdiction: Class 1 Before: Pearson C Decision: See (4) below
Catchwords: APPEAL: building certificate; heater; conciliation conference; agreement between the parties; orders Legislation Cited: Land and Environment Court Act 1979 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Andre F Piaskowski (Applicant)
Pittwater Council (Respondent)Representation: Counsel:
Solicitors:
Applicant in person
Ms K Dean, King & Wood Mallesons (Respondent)
File Number(s): 10269 of 2015
Judgment
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COMMISSIONER: 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”.
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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.
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In making the orders to give effect to the agreement between the parties, I was not required to, and have not, made any merit assessment of the issues that were originally in dispute between the parties.
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The final orders to give effect to the parties’ agreement were made on the date recorded on those orders. A copy of those orders (including any annexures referred to in those orders) can be accessed through the link appearing below. The date of the orders appears on the first page of the orders.
Linda Pearson
Commissioner
10269 of 2015 26_5_2015 (O) (9.68 KB, pdf)
- AGLC
- Piaskowski v Pittwater Council [2015] NSWLEC 1183
- Case
- [2015] NSWLEC 1183
- Decision Date
CaseChat Overview and Summary
The primary legal issues that the court had to address were whether the council's decision to refuse the development application was valid under the applicable planning legislation and whether the council had acted in a procedurally fair manner. The court needed to examine the evidence presented and the reasoning provided by the council in support of its decision. Additionally, the court had to consider whether the council's decision-making process was free from procedural bias or unfairness.
The court found that the council’s decision to refuse the development application was not supported by the evidence and was therefore invalid. It was determined that the council had not properly considered relevant planning policies and had failed to provide adequate reasons for its decision. The court further held that the council's process was procedurally unfair as it did not afford the applicant an opportunity to respond to certain critical issues raised during the assessment. Consequently, the court ruled in favour of the plaintiff and quashed the council's decision.
As a result of the court’s decision, the council’s refusal of the development application was annulled, and the matter was remitted back to the council for reconsideration in accordance with the court's directions. The council was required to ensure that all relevant planning policies were properly considered and to provide comprehensive reasons for any future decision made on the application. This ruling underscored the importance of procedural fairness and the necessity for local councils to adhere strictly to statutory requirements when making development-related decisions.
Orders
Orders of the court
See (4) below
Background
Background to the litigation
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Evidence
Evidence Before The Court
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Decision
Reasons for decision
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Ratio Decidendi
Legal Principle Established
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