The Court held, following Gardiner and D'Arcy, that legal costs and disbursements incurred in appealing a s 124 Local Government Act order are not recoverable as 'compensation' under s 181, as they are costs of litigation rather than expenses incurred as a consequence of the order itself. The Court further found on the merits that the s 124 order was neither unsubstantiated nor unreasonable, as the Column 1 powers under item 22 extend to ancillary matters such as ensuring inspection access to waste treatment facilities, and the discovery of a previously undisclosed watercourse close to the property substantiated the Column 2 circumstances. The Court also declined to award costs under r 3.7 of the LEC Rules, holding that where Class 2 proceedings settle without a hearing, the Court should not conduct a hypothetical trial to determine the likely outcome for costs purposes.
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