Daley v Murray

Land and Environment Court New South Wales Medium Neutral Citation: Daley & anor v Murray [2015] NSWLEC 1489 Hearing dates:25 November 2015Date of orders: 25 November 2015 Decision date: 25 November 2015 Jurisdiction:Class 2Before: Galwey AC Decision: The application is upheld. See orders at paragraph 15. Catchwords: TREES (DISPUTES BETWEEN NEIGHBOURS); damage by a fallen tree; risk of damage and injury; orders for tree removal; consent orders. Legislation Cited: Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act 2006 Category:Principal judgmentParties: Anthony Daley (First Applicant) Bronwyn Daley (Second Applicant) Catherine Murray (Respondent) Representation: Anthony Daley, litigant in person (First Applicant) Bronwyn Daley, litigant in person (Second Applicant) Catherine Murray, litigant in person (Respondent) File Number(s):20869 of 2015JudgmentThis decision was given as an extemporaneous decision. It has been revised and edited prior to publication.Background Prior to a severe storm in April 2015, Ms Murray (‘the respondent’) had three Spotted Gums standing in her back garden. After the storm she was left with two. The tree that fell during the storm caused damage to neighbouring properties, including to parts of the Daley’s dwelling and surroundings, and to the fence on their common boundary. Pursuant to Part 2 of the Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act 2006 (‘the Trees Act’) Mr and Mrs Daley (‘the applicants’) applied to the Land and Environment Court seeking orders for the remaining two trees (‘the Trees’) to be removed. They do not seek compensation for damage to their property, only for Ms Murray’s share of repairs that they have carried out to...