Buck$ v Byron Shire Council S34/1999 [2000] HCATrans 66 (10 March 2000)

IN THE HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Office of the Registry

Sydney No S34 of 1999

B e t w e e n -

FAST BUCK$

Applicant

and

BYRON SHIRE COUNCIL

Respondent

Application for special leave to appeal

GLEESON CJ

CALLINAN J

TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

AT SYDNEY ON FRIDAY, 10 MARCH 2000, AT 11.32 AM

Copyright in the High Court of Australia

MR F. BUCK$ appeared in person.

MR. D.P. WILSON: I appear for the respondent, your Honours. (instructed by Wilshire Webb)

GLEESON CJ: Yes, Mr Buck$.

MR BUCK$: Thank you, your Honour. I do not propose to go into any planning matters. I put in a late submission the other day. I understand the respondents have no objection to that going before the Court. There is just a couple of matters of principle that I would like to address very briefly. I submit that the Court of Appeal in this matter has effectively said, firstly, that explicit findings are not necessary in a merit determination so long as implied findings can be detected. Secondly, they have said precision is not necessary in a merit determination. And, thirdly, it is acceptable, or at least excusable, for a merit tribunal to be led astray by an applicant's dubious arguments.

Now, if I am correct about that, then the implications for accountable administration are pretty obvious and it is also obvious that the issues are not restricted to planning or to New South Wales. So, these, if your Honours were not inclined to accept that the planning matters I have raised constitute special circumstances, then I would say that these particular implied findings of the Court of Appeal do meet that criterion.

GLEESON CJ: We do not need to hear you, Mr Wilson.

We have considered the written submissions that have been filed on behalf of the applicant, together with the additional oral submissions that he has made this morning. Notwithstanding those submissions, the Court is of the view that there are insufficient reasons to doubt the correctness of the decision of the Court of Appeal in this matter to warrant a grant of special leave. The application is refused.

Can you resist an order for costs, Mr Buck$?

MR BUCK$: No.

GLEESON CJ: The applicant must pay the respondent's costs of the application.

The Court will adjourn to reconstitute.

AT 11.34 AM THE MATTER WAS CONCLUDED