Roads and Maritime Services v Rockdale City Council & Ors [2015] NSWSC 1844

Roads and Maritime Services v Rockdale City Council & Ors [2015] NSWSC 1844

On proper construction, the trusts require Council to make available, at no cost, those parts of Lot 14 and Lot 1 required by RMS for road purposes (including construction and operation of public infrastructure), not limited to areas long reserved for County roads; the Local Government Act 1993 does not preclude Council from performing its obligations as trustee; and the trusts are charitable. The exact form of orders is stood over to permit parties to propose appropriate declaratory relief and for Council to comply or give undertakings.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
04 December 2015
Procedural Posture
Principal Judgment / Stand Over the Proceedings to Allow Submissions as to Form of Declaratory Orders and for Council to Give Effect to Trusts or Give Undertakings
Outcome
Stood over for short period to allow submissions on form of declaratory relief and for Council to comply or give undertakings; if Council fails, possibility of removal as trustee to be considered after further hearing.
Legal Topics
['trusts and Trustees' 'purpose Trusts' 'local Government Obligations' 'charitable Trusts' 'road Construction and Acquisition of Land' 'cy Pres Scheme' 'interpretation of Planning Instruments']
['equity' 'local Government Law' 'charities'] ['trusts and Trustees' 'purpose Trusts' 'local Government Obligations' 'charitable Trusts' 'road Construction and Acquisition of Land' 'cy Pres Scheme' 'interpretation of Planning Instruments']

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Procedural Posture

Principal Judgment / Stand Over the Proceedings to Allow Submissions as to Form of Declaratory Orders and for Council to Give Effect to Trusts or Give Undertakings

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether Rockdale City Council is obligated under the Deed and Declaration of Trust to transfer parts of Lots 1 and 14 to RMS at no cost for road works and ancillary purposes' 'Whether the trusts for the land are charitable trusts' 'Whether the Local Government Act 1993 (NSW) prevents the Council from making the required land available to RMS' 'Whether a cy-pres or administrative scheme is needed if trusts are impracticable or impossible to perform']

Ratio Decidendi

On proper construction, the trusts require Council to make available, at no cost, those parts of Lot 14 and Lot 1 required by RMS for road purposes (including construction and operation of public infrastructure), not limited to areas long reserved for County roads; the Local Government Act 1993 does not preclude Council from performing its obligations as trustee; and the trusts are charitable. The exact form of orders is stood over to permit parties to propose appropriate declaratory relief and for Council to comply or give undertakings.

Court Disposition

Stood over for short period to allow submissions on form of declaratory relief and for Council to comply or give undertakings; if Council fails, possibility of removal as trustee to be considered after further hearing.

Orders

  • []