The Commonwealth v Reeve [1949] HCA 22

High Court of Australia Latham C.J. Dixon, McTiernan, Williams and Webb JJ. The Commonwealth v Reeve [1949] HCA 22

ORDER Appeal dismissed with costs.

Cur. adv. vult.

The following written judgments were delivered:—

July 1 Latham C.J.

This is an appeal from a decision of the Full Court of the Supreme Court of New South Wales upholding an assessment of compensation by Owen J. On 8th November 1945 the Commonwealth acquired the land occupied by the Grace Building in Sydney. The Grace Building contained many rooms, one of which on the ground floor was let to the plaintiffs Rose Reeve and her daughter Dorothy Mavis Reeve. At the time of acquisition they were monthly tenants and the effect of the National Security (Landlord and Tenant) Regulations was that they were entitled to remain in possession indefinitely if they paid the rent and otherwise behaved in a proper manner. The claim for compensation was made by virtue of s. 17 of the Lands Acquisition Act 1906-1936, which provides that, upon publication of a notification in the Gazette that land has been acquired, the estate and interest of every person entitled to the land shall be taken to have been converted into a claim for compensation. "Land" is defined in s. 5 to include any estate or interest in land. The plaintiffs therefore claimed compensation under s. 28 of the Act, which provides that, in determining compensation under the Act, regard shall be had (subject to the Act) to the following matters:—"(a) The value of the land acquired; (b) The damage caused by the severance of the land acquired from other land of the person entitled to compensation; and (c) The enhancement or depreciation in value of other land adjoining the land taken or severed therefrom of the person entitled to compensation by reason of the carrying out of the public purpose for which the acquired land was acquired." No claim was made under heads (b) and (c). The plaintiffs' claim is for the value of their interest as tenants.