Silman & Bollen v Chief Executive, Department of Lands

Jack F B Silman and Christina E Bollen appealed to the Land Court against the Chief Executive's valuation of their land as at 1 January 1995, asserting the valuation should be $55,000 instead of $100,000. The court was tasked with deciding whether the valuation was discriminatory, simplistic, erroneous, or if it was conducted in accordance with the provisions of the Valuation of Land Act 1944. The court also had to consider the merits of the appellants' objections to the valuation methodology.

The court examined the appellants' arguments, which included objections to the Department's practices regarding the display of annual valuations and the comparison of improved lots to unimproved lots. However, the court found that the Land Court lacked the authority to investigate the 1994 valuation as the appeal was specifically related to the 1995 valuation. Furthermore, the court held that the Department's practice of using analysed sales evidence for determining unimproved values was in line with the Act, and the appellants' arguments did not successfully challenge this methodology. The court also found that the valuation was correctly determined by excluding the value of improvements, as required by the Act, and that the appellants' proposed method of valuing the land was not acceptable. The court affirmed the valuation as it was supported by the sales evidence provided by the respondent and was not challenged by the appellants.

The appeal was dismissed, and the Chief Executive's valuation of the land was affirmed as at $100,000.