HOUSE OF PEACE PTY LTD & ANOR v BANKSTOWN CITY COUNCIL [2000] NSWCA 44

Reported Decision : [2000] 48 NSWLR 498 106 LGERA 440

New South Wales Court of Appeal

CITATION : HOUSE OF PEACE PTY LTD & ANOR v BANKSTOWN CITY COUNCIL [2000] NSWCA 44 FILE NUMBER(S) : CA 40846/98 HEARING DATE(S) : 20 July 1999 JUDGMENT DATE : 16 March 2000

PARTIES : HOUSE OF PEACE PTY LTD & ANOR v BANKSTOWN CITY COUNCIL JUDGMENT OF : Mason P at 1; Stein JA at 56; Giles JA at 57

LOWER COURT JURISDICTION : Land & Environment Court LOWER COURT LEC 40047/98 FILE NUMBER(S) : LOWER COURT Sheahan J JUDICIAL OFFICER :

COUNSEL : Appellants: T F Robertson Respondent: N A Hemmings QC SOLICITORS : Appellants: Woolf Associates Respondent: Marsdens CATCHWORDS : Development consent - construing the purposes of an existing use - s109B(1) Environmental Planning and Assessment Act - use of land - place of public worship - mosque as church - the use of dictionaries. D DECISION : Appeal allowed

THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES COURT OF APPEAL CA 40846/98 LEC 40047/98 MASON P STEIN JA GILES JA Thursday 16 March 2000 HOUSE OF PEACE PTY LTD & Anor v BANKSTOWN CITY COUNCIL At issue in this appeal is the right of the appellants to rely on development consent given in 1954 for a "church" as planning authority to conduct a mosque. Development consent was originally given to the Presbyterian Church of New South Wales for "the erection of brick church and office", a consent the second appellant relies on after 1995 to conduct their Muslim mosque in Sefton. Bankstown City Council (the respondent) sought orders in the Land and Environment Court that such use was not authorised by the 1954 consent.