27 February 2007 - Ordinary Meeting of Council (pdf. 14MB)

Ordinary Meeting of Council - 27 February 2007 6 / 4
Item 6
S02466
6 February 2007
The larger categories are appeals in respect of residential apartments (25%), and dual occupancy
(20%).
The “Other” category in the previous chart comprises single dwellings, fences, demolition,
telecommunications structures and appeals against conditions of consent.
COSTS
During the half year ended December 2006, Council expended $382,100 on legal costs and
associated expenses in relation to Land & Environment Court matters. This is $417,900 less than
the revised budget of $800,000, which is $319,200 less than the same period in 2005/2006 and
$453,900 less than the same period in 2004/2005.
These costs are made up of legal fees, fees charged by consultants retained as expert witnesses
(largely court-appointed experts) and other costs incurred as a result of Council’s role in the
proceedings. In addition to expenditure on appeals, a further amount of $6,600 was spent on expert
legal advice regarding development assessment matters.
Legal Costs and Associated Expenses
2002/2003 - 2006/2007
Financial Year Total Costs 1st quarter
September
2nd quarter
December
3rd quarter
March
4th quarter
June
2002/2003
(76 appeals lodged)
2003/2004
(128 appeals lodged)
2004/2005
(135 appeals lodged)
2005/2006
(71 appeals lodged)
2006/2007
(31 appeals @Dec)
$2,252,000 $302,000 $452,000 $665,000 $833,000
$2,205,000 $468,000 $378,000 $605,000 $754,000
$1,867,000 $274,000 $562,000 $314,000 $717,000
$1,239,900 $338,350 $362,950 $329,300 $209,300
$382,100 $187,800 $194,300
The above table indicates that despite the number of appeals having remained of a similar order,
there has been significantly less costs incurred compared to the same period of the previous year.
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