Protecting beachfront properties from exposure to coastal erosion and hazards is an ongoing problem across much of the NSW coast and made worse by climate change. Recently, the Land and Environment Court (Court) considered whether development consent should be granted…
Introduction This is the second blog in our series about sentencing principles in criminal prosecutions commenced by local councils and government departments. Our first blog can be read here: Sentencing Principles Explained – Q & A #1. In this blog, we answer…
Introduction This is the first in a series of posts about sentencing principles in criminal prosecutions commenced by local councils and government departments. In prosecution proceedings, a defendant will be sentenced by the Court after they are found guilty of…
Yesterday the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment Bill 2025 (Bill) was passed by NSW Parliament and is now awaiting assent. The Bill will make some key amendments to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (Act) with some commencing on…
This is the first blog in our LTL in Focus: Certifier Series. The Certifier Series will cover a range of questions, issues and changes affecting both private and local council certifiers. A key function of certifiers is to issue occupation…
Planning for Bushfire Protection 2019 (PBP) is often considered by consent authorities when dealing with development applications proposed on bush fire prone land, either by reason of section 4.14 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EPA Act) or when…
Section 4.16(4) of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EPA Act) allows a consent authority to grant either total or partial consent to a development application, by granting development consent to either: the development for which the consent is sought,…
A relevant enforcement authority (including a local council) can issue a development control order (DCO) in certain circumstances to require a person to do or refrain from doing things to ensure compliance with the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979…
Note: This blog was first published in January 2013. It has been updated to reflect changes in the law since then. Resident objectors have a unique role in development appeals in Class 1 of the Land & Environment Court’s jurisdiction….
Before taking enforcement action, it is critical for the enforcement agency to identify the correct perpetrator. A failure to do so may result in the validity of the enforcement action being successfully challenged or defeated. This issue regularly arises in…
The power of a consent authority to modify a development consent is set out at sections 4.55 (for modification of consents generally) and 4.56 (for modification of consents granted by the Court) of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979…
We previously blogged on the recent Court of Appeal decision in Ross v Lane [2022] NSWCA 235, in which the Court held that the application of SEPP 65 to a particular DA was not a “jurisdictional fact” capable of objective determination by…