Van Goor v Brisbane City Council

[2010] QPEC 11

PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT COURT  [2010] QPEC 11
JUDGE RACKEMANN

P & E Appeal No 2802 of 2009

JOHANNA VAN GOOR & ORS  Appellant

v

BRISBANE CITY COUNCIL & ORS  Respondent

BRISBANE

18/02/2010

ENVIRONMENT AND PLANNING – COSTS – Failure to give proper response to request for particulars in accordance with court’s direction – jurisdiction enlivened – discretion exercised in favour of making order 

ORDER

HIS HONOUR:  In this matter directions were made by me on the 17th of December 2009, which included a direction that the appellants respond to a request for further and better particulars and that they do so by the 22nd of January 2010.  The appellants' response was late, but more concerningly, it did not properly respond to many of the requests.  The court's procedural requirement, set by its direction, obviously required a proper response, a substantive response to the request insofar as the request was not-objectionable.  That is not what was received. 

Objection was taken to the response.  This elicited a further response from the appellants' solicitors which remedied the situation in part only.  It was not until the subject application was made on behalf of the first co-respondent that an amended notice of appeal was forthcoming, which properly addressed the matters which had been the subject of the request. 

In the circumstances, the court's jurisdiction to award costs is enlivened. 

The first co-respondent seeks the costs of the application in pending proceeding.  The solicitor for the appellant points out the difficulties that she had in obtaining information from the appellants.  However, rather than respond by seeking extra time or coming back to the court to seek an extended timetable, inadequate particulars were given.  In the circumstances I am minded to exercise my discretion by ordering that the appellants pay the first co-respondent's costs of the application in pending proceeding. 

...

HIS HONOUR:  Otherwise order as per draft initialled by me and placed with the papers. 

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