Letsios v Thind [2019] NSWLEC 1356

Land and Environment Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Letsios v Thind [2019] NSWLEC 1356 Hearing dates: 24 July 2019 Date of orders: 24 July 2019 Decision date: 24 July 2019 Jurisdiction: Class 2 Before: Galwey AC Decision: The application is refused. Catchwords: TREES (DISPUTES BETWEEN NEIGHBOURS) –hedge – obstruction of sunlight and views – hedge pruned prior to hearing – obstruction not severe – respondent offered to prune overhanging branches Legislation Cited: Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours Act) 2006 (NSW) Category: Principal judgment Parties: Peter Letsios (Applicant) Harpreet Kaur Thind (Respondent) Representation: L Letsios, agent (Applicant) H Thind, litigant in person (Respondent) File Number(s): 2019/114467 Publication restriction: No

Judgment

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

The application 1. Peter Letsios ('the applicant') has applied to the Court pursuant to s 14B of the Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act 2006 (NSW) ('the Trees Act') seeking orders to remedy the obstruction of sunlight and views caused by trees in a neighbouring hedge. The hedge has been the subject of a dispute between Mr Letsios and his neighbours, Harpreet Thind ('the respondent') and her husband, for some time. 2. Mr Letsios was granted leave for his son Louis Letsios to represent him at the onsite hearing. Mrs Thind represented herself.

Background 1. Mr Letsios has lived at his Gladesville property for 42 years. Mrs Thind and her husband purchased the neighbouring property eight years ago. At that time, cypress trees in a hedge in their front setback, along the common boundary shared with Mr Letsios, were dying. There were drill holes in the trees' stems. Hunter's Hill Council approved removal of the trees, noting on the permit that they were "…dying from apparent poisoning" (Hunter's Hill Council Tree Preservation Order, included in Exhibit 1). 2. The Thinds planted a hedge of juniper trees in 2014 to replace the removed hedge. In 2015, they replaced the junipers with a hedge of lilli pillies, planted by a professional landscaper (Landscapes Unearthed). Those trees are now over four years old.