Lilly & Rutherford v Worimi Aboriginal Community Co-Operative Ltd (In Administration) [2018] NSWLEC 1611

Land and Environment Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Lilly & Rutherford v Worimi Aboriginal Community Co-Operative Ltd (In Administration) [2018] NSWLEC 1611 Hearing dates: 20 November 2018 Date of orders: 20 November 2018 Decision date: 20 November 2018 Jurisdiction: Class 2 Before: Galwey AC Decision: See orders at [11]. Catchwords: TREES (DISPUTES BETWEEN NEIGHBOURS) – Part 2A application – trees are not planted so as to form a hedge – Part 2 application – risk of injury Legislation Cited: Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act 2006 (NSW) Texts Cited: AS4373:2007 Pruning of amenity trees WorkCover NSW Code of Practice for the Amenity Tree Industry Category: Principal judgment Parties: Amanda Lilly (First Applicant) Richard Rutherford (Second Applicant) Worimi Aboriginal Community Co-Operative Ltd (In Administration) (Respondent) Representation: A Lilly and R Rutherford, litigants in person (Applicants) P Campion, agent (Respondent) File Number(s): 2018/275046 Publication restriction: No

Judgment

This decision was given as an extemporaneous decision. It has been revised and edited prior to publication.

Background 1. Amanda Lilly and Richard Rutherford ('the applicants') have applied to the Court pursuant to both s 7 and s 14B of the Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act 2006 (NSW) ('the Trees Act') seeking orders relating to three neighbouring trees. 2. Their application under Part 2 of the Trees Act concerns a large mature Blackbutt (Eucalyptus pilularis) on a neighbouring property owned by Worimi Aboriginal Community Co-Operative Ltd (In Administration) ('the respondent'), near the common boundary shared by the two properties and near the front boundary of the respondent's property. The applicants are concerned about injury and damage likely to be caused by limbs falling from the tree. 3. Their Part 2A application concerns the same Blackbutt and two Broad-leaved Paperbarks (Melaleuca quinquenervia) that they say obstruct sunlight to windows of their dwelling.