Tavares v Pikoulas

Land and Environment Court New South Wales Medium Neutral Citation: Tavares v Pikoulas & anor [2016] NSWLEC 1207 Hearing dates:6 May 2016Date of orders: 06 May 2016 Decision date: 06 May 2016 Jurisdiction:Class 2Before: Durland AC Decision: The application is upheld. Catchwords: Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours); injury; deadwood; pruning ordered Legislation Cited: Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act 2006 Cases Cited: Barker v Kyriakides [2007] NSWLEC 292 Category:Principal judgmentParties: Belinda Tavares (Applicant) Mechel Pikoulas (First Respondent) Pantelis Athanasopoulos (Second Respondent) Representation: B Tavares, litigant in person (Applicant) M Moss, property manager (Respondents) File Number(s):20046 of 2016JudgmentThis decision was given as an extemporaneous decision. It has been revised and edited prior to publication. This is an application pursuant to section 7 of the Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act 2006 (the Act) concerning a mature Corymbia maculata (Spotted Gum) located on the respondents’ property at Padstow in Sydney. The tree is located at the rear of the respondents’ property close to the common boundary fence at the rear of the applicant’s site. The trunk of the tree leans towards the applicant’s property as a result of being suppressed in the past by an adjacent tree that is no longer standing. The suppression has also resulted in an asymmetrical canopy with the majority of the foliage being located towards the applicant’s property. There is a pool on the applicant’s property located under a portion of the tree canopy. A clear plastic domed canopy has been installed over the pool. The applicant is seeking orders...