Ross Bilton & Ors v Georgia Ligdas (Costs) [2016] NSWSC 1585

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Ross Bilton & Ors v Georgia Ligdas (Costs) [2016] NSWSC 1585 Hearing dates: 25 October 2016 Date of orders: 02 November 2016 Decision date: 02 November 2016 Jurisdiction: Equity Before: Rein J Decision: See [29] Catchwords: COSTS- Whether there was disentitling conduct by the 1st defendant - where two of three groups of plaintiffs were granted easement by prescription and the third group of plaintiffs was granted easement by virtue of s.88K - where plaintiffs perceive themselves as a one unit HELD-1st Defendant was entitled to resist s.88K claim- defendant's conduct not sufficient to deny her the benefit of s.88K (5)-By reason of offset and because plaintiffs succeeded on different basis each party to pay own costs REAL PROPERTY-where defendant argues that the passageway burdened by the easement should be locked by a second gate for security reasons- where plaintiffs contend second gate is no more than an obstruction HELD: The second gate is an obstacle to the prescriptive easement to which two sets of plaintiffs have been found to be entitled - gate to be removed Legislation Cited: Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW) Cases Cited: Deanshaw & Deanshaw v Marshall (1978) 20 SASR 146 Dresdner v Scida [2003] NSWSC 957 Gohl v Hender [1930] SASR 158 Goodwin v Yee Holdings Pty Ltd (1997) 8 BPR 15,795 McCrow v Chaplin [2009] NSWSC 965 Owners Strata Plan 13635 v Ryan [2006] NSWSC 342 Rainbowforce Pty Limited v Skyton Holdings Pty Limited [2010] NSWLEC 2 Mitchell v Boutagy (2001) 118 LGERA 249; [2001] NSWSC 1045 Ross Bilton & Ors v Georgia Ligdas [2016] NSWSC 1262 Shi v ABI-K Pty Ltd (2014) 87 NSWLR 568; [2014] NSWCA 293 Stepanoski v Chen (No 2) [2012] NSWSC 1037 Texts Cited: Kunc J "S.88K Easements- How Much Discretion Really?" paper delivered to the Environment and Planning Law Association 22 October 2016 Category: Costs Parties: Ross Bilton (1st Plaintiff) Clair Weaver (2nd Plaintiff) Sinead Dwyer (3rd Plaintiff) Alan Dwyer (4th Plaintiff) David Hudson (5th Plaintiff) Georgia Ligdas (1st Defendant) Christine Kensworthy (2nd Defendant) Executor of the Estate of the late Brian Holbache (3rd Defendant) Colleen Earl (4th Defendant) Gerald Michael Carr (5th Defendant) Joanne Crews (6th Defendant) Margaret Morrell (7th Defendant) Robert Morrell (8th Defendant) Representation: Counsel: G.A Moore (Plaintiffs) J.M Ireland (1st Defendant)