Penrith City Council v Mathie and Anor [2000] NSWLEC 57

Land and Environment Court of New South Wales

CITATION : Penrith City Council v Mathie and Anor [2000] NSWLEC 57 PROSECUTOR: Penrith City Council PARTIES : DEFENDANTS: Norman Munroe Mathie Camelot Grange Pty Ltd FILE NUMBER(S) : 50080 of 1999; 50082 of 1999 CORAM: Talbot J KEY ISSUES: Prosecution :- removal of trees - two defendants in the same interest treated as co-offenders Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 s 76A LEGISLATION CITED: Rivers and Foreshores Improvement Act 1948 Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 Lowe v R (1984) 154 CLR 606; CASES CITED: Lovelock v R (1978) 19 ALR 327; Tiger Nominees Pty Ltd and Anor v State Pollution Control Commission (1992) 75 LGRA 71 DATES OF HEARING: 24/02/2000, 25/02/2000 EX TEMPORE 02/25/2000 JUDGMENT DATE :

PROSECUTOR: Mrs J C Kelly (Barrister) SOLICITORS: Gadens Lawyers LEGAL REPRESENTATIVES: DEFENDANTS: Mr J J Webster (Barrister) SOLICITORS: Taylor Kelso

JUDGMENT:

IN THE LAND AND Matter Nos. 50080 and 50082 of 1999 ENVIRONMENT COURT Coram: Talbot J OF NEW SOUTH WALES Decision Date: 25 February 2000

Penrith City Council Prosecutor v Norman Munroe Mathie Camelot Grange Pty Ltd Defendants

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

1. HIS HONOUR: In both these matters the defendants are charged that between 29 April and 5 May 1999 on land described in the summons as being at Luddenham, they committed an offence against the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 ("the EP&A Act") in that contrary to s 76A of that Act they respectively carried out development without having obtained development consent as required by the relevant environmental planning instrument. On the date of the first return of the summons in each case, on 9 December 1999, the respective defendants entered a plea of guilty.