Here is what happened in court:
Thursday 23 December
This day continued the process of the giving of expert evidence before the court.
The day started with a Sydney/USA video conference with a representative of Matthews International (who are the manufacturers of the Cremator Unit that will be installed should the development be approved).
Expert evidence was then provided in relation to the actual industry. This industry evidence was provided by two gentlemen who work at Crematoria in Australia , and it included a lot of discussion regarding the actual mechanics of the process, as well as the noise and emissions that may be generated.
Friday 24 December
Christmas Eve was a half day in court, and saw experts in Town Planning provide their evidence. There was a significant amount of discussion and detailing of various consent conditions that have been brought forward. Some of these conditions had been tabled at such a late stage, that the parties were directed to file and serve their respective draft “without prejudice” consent conditions, together with their respective written submissions relating to those conditions.
The Court directed that the parties forward an e-Court communication to the Registrar over the Christmas/New Year period to formalize the directions made in the Court. That step was taken early in the New Year.
The end of the court sessions resulted in Commissioner Dixon determining that the Commissioners would 'reserve judgment' until such a time as they have considered all evidence presented. All paper work related to the case was due to the court by the end of January - so we can presume that it is only now that the Commissioners can begin their deliberations in earnest.
What has happened since the end of the hearings?
Like the rest of you, we have largely spent the month of January wondering how things are going to proceed, and feeling considerably nervous and anxious about the outcome. In response to our anxiousness, Council very kindly organised a meeting last week between members of the Strategy Group, Council's Solicitor, and a representative from the Council. The aim of the meeting was to clarify some of the concerns that we, as a Strategy Group, felt were representative of the concerns held by the wider community. At this meeting, the following information was clarified.
- We can expect one of three possibly decisions:
a) The Development is refused outright
b) The Development is partially approved (e.g. Yes to the Funeral Home/Chapel element, but no to the Crematorium) with conditions
c) The whole Development is approved with conditions. (i.e. Yes to the whole thing, but subject to certain conditions determined by the court).
- The Consent Conditions that were discussed on the last day of court are an entirely normal part of the proceedings. Council's legal team has argued, throughout the process, that this development should not be approved, but IF IT IS the approval would need to exist with conditions. Both Council and the Applicant have made written submissions to the Court about what they feel those consent conditions should be. This does not mean that Council expects the Court to approve the Development; it is simply part of what always happens at the Land and Environment Court in an appeal of this type (class 1 appeal).
- If the Commissioners rule the Development should be refused, then the submissions relating to consent conditions will not even be looked at, therefore those conditions are not persuasive in the Commissioners’ judgment of whether the development is lawful or not.
- We have no way of knowing when the judgment is going to be made. Even Council's legal team will not know until a very short time before it is delivered. The judgment may not be an event/occasion that we can witness as it may not be formally read in court - it may be simply a written judgment that is handed to the legal representatives of both parties by the Registrar of the Court. Council's legal team has assured us that we will be informed as soon as that is possible. The earliest we could really expect a decision is late February. However, it could still be many months away. Council's legal representatives have no way of determining how long it may take.
- Once a decision is made, there can only be an appeal if there has been an error made in a 'point of law', and that appeal would need to be made within 28 days of the decision. Such an appeal could only come from either the Applicant or from Council.
This past weekend, the Strategy Group held a meeting to discuss all of the above information (and to put this information together). Obviously we will continue to keep you informed as new information comes to light.
