Compulsory Acquisition and Valuation

To provide services to the community, Government agencies need to acquire land. The process and methodology to assess and determine compensation to the land owner can be complex particularly where the land is subject to restrictive zoning controls or where the land has potential for redevelopment. Where land is valued for rating and taxing purposes, the valuation can have a major impact on landowners for a considerable period of time.

Our expertise includes:

• providing strategic front end advice to acquiring authorities
• acting on major project property acquisitions
• acting in class 3 appeals in the Land and Environment Court and Court of Appeal arising from the compulsory acquisition of land under the Land Acquisition (Just Terms Compensation) Act
• acting in Class 3 appeals arising from land valuations under the Valuation of Land Act 
• mediation and negotiated settlements of compensation claims.

Roads and Traffic Authority of NSW

We have acted in major strategic property acquisitions and over 70 cases for the RTA in the Land and Environment Court and Court of Appeal. A selection of the matters include:

Narellan Road Upgrade

Advising on the acquisition strategy for a number of parcels of land at Narellan for the Narellan Road Upgrade. This advice involved a detailed consideration of whether the project involvement "betterment" through the added value to the residue land.

Alto Group Claim

Advising on the proposed acquisition from the Alto Group of a portion of land used for the construction of the Lane Cove Tunnel. This matter involved the detailed consideration of whether a claim could be made for loss arising out of changes to the road arrangements and intersections around the site.

M7 Westlink

Advising as to whether there is evidence of betterment arising from the construction of the M7 Westlink motorway. This involved obtaining detailed valuation advice and conducting a strategic review of the advice and applying it to relevant acquisition cases.

Doueihi v Roads and Traffic Authority

We acted for the Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) in a dispute over a parcel of land at Westmeand which it had compulsorily acquired for the construction of the M7 Liverpool to Parramatta Transit Way. The Court awarded compensation in an amount less than that offered by the RTA, an appeal to the Court of Appeal was rejected and the RTA obtained a costs order against the claimant.

Sydney Airports Corporation

We advised Sydney Airports Corporation in a major valuation case in the Land and Environment Court to assess the unimproved value of parcels of land at Sydney Airport. This is the first case in Australia involving the valuation of land at an airport for rating and taxation purposes. The case settled following detailed negotiations.

Maloney v Department of Planning

We are currently acting for the Department of Planning in relation to a claim for compensation arising out of the acquisition of land for open space purposes in the north west growth sector in Sydney.

Liverpool Council v RailCorp

We are acting for RailCorp in relation to a claim for compensation arising out of the acquisition of land for the Southern Sydney Freight Line.