Tandou Ltd v Western Lands Commissioner

Tandou Ltd appealed to the New South Wales Court of Appeal against a decision of the Land and Environment Court. The dispute concerned the validity of a notice issued by the Western Lands Commissioner under section 38 of the *Western Lands Act 1901* (NSW) requiring Tandou Ltd to remove certain fencing and stock from land. Tandou Ltd argued that the Commissioner had no power to issue such a notice.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the Commissioner had the authority under section 38 of the *Western Lands Act 1901* to issue a notice requiring the removal of fencing and stock from land that was the subject of a lease, where the Commissioner believed the fencing and stock were causing or likely to cause damage to the land. This involved an interpretation of the scope of the Commissioner's powers in relation to lessees and the management of Western Lands.

The Court of Appeal found that section 38 of the *Western Lands Act 1901* conferred a broad power on the Commissioner to issue notices requiring the removal of anything that was causing or likely to cause damage to the land, irrespective of whether that thing was lawfully on the land. The Court reasoned that the purpose of the section was to protect the land from damage, and this purpose would be undermined if the Commissioner's power was limited to only those things that were unlawfully present. The Court held that the Commissioner had acted within his powers in issuing the notice to Tandou Ltd.

The appeal was dismissed.