Compulsory Land Acquisitions: Your Right to Fair Compensation
In recent times and with some urgency, the Melbourne Water Corporation has been compulsorily acquiring land in the local area to facilitate the construction of the desalination plant in Wonthaggi and the related pipeline to Melbourne. Duffy & Simon is currently acting on behalf of a number of affected local residents to enable them to negotiate a fair and equitable level of compensation for the loss of their land.
The Land Acquisition and Compensation Act 1986 (Vic) (the LACA) allows certain government authorities to acquire an interest in land from a Victorian landholder. In notifying an affected landholder of the acquisition, the authority must provide an offer of compensation that reflects a "fair and reasonable estimate" of the value of the land in question.
Whilst the authority is obligated to base the offer of compensation on a number of factors, it is not unusual for certain issues to be outside of the authority's knowledge at the time the offer is made. For example, what if part of the land that is to be acquired is used by the landholder for agricultural purposes that are only known to that landholder? It follows that ordinarily the offer of compensation put forward by the authority will fall short of what the landholder believes that they are entitled to under the LACA.
At the time the offer of compensation is made, the landholder must also be informed of their right to gain legal advice and retain legal representation in relation to the offer of compensation. As an affected landholder, you will also be informed that the authority is liable to pay for that advice and representation.
When an offer of compromise is disputed, an affected landholder is entitled to engage the service of professionals to produce a sworn valuation of their entitlements. Such a step is necessary to ensure just compensation is awarded.
Our role is to guide affected landholders through the myriad of possibilities and risks inherent in negotiating a fair and equitable settlement from the authority. Whilst at first glance, an offer of compensation may appear fair and reasonable, upon close examination of the types of losses that may be claimed the offer may in fact fall short of what an affected land holder is entitled to claim.
We will act in your best interests, assuring you receive the best outcome in your situation. We will facilitate the payment of the offer of compensation to you, whilst reserving your rights to negotiate an additional amount to represent your true loss.
Please contact Don Duffy to discuss your Property Law matter, or feel free to contact our office to make an appointment with another practitioner in this area.