A review may come about in different ways depending on your involvement in the planning permit application, the most common being:
- Permit applicant seeking to review a refusal to grant a permit (under Section 77 of the ACT)
- Permit applicant seeking to review a failure to grant a permit within the prescribed time (under Section 79 of the ACT)
- Objector seeking to review the decision to grant a permit (under Section 82(1) of the ACT)
The VCAT process may be unfamiliar and daunting, or it may be one that you are familiar with but have had an unsuccessful outcome in the past.
Glossop Town Planning was established in 1997 by John Glossop. The firm has had well over 900 VCAT appearances. With this wealth of knowledge and experience, we recommend you speak with us in preparing for VCAT.
If you are a permit applicant, we can provide you with independent advice about your project. Independent town planning advice is important in two ways: firstly, it offers an impartial opinion on the merits of your application. Secondly, provided this advice is provided early, you may have the chance to amend your proposal to remedy any deficiencies with the application.
There are timeframes by which amended plans need to be prepared and circulated to relevant parties. We can advise you of the benefits and consequences of undertaking the step of circulating amended plans for your VCAT case.
We can also identify other specialists that may assist in supporting the case. Most commonly these include: Traffic Engineering; Landscape Architecture; Arboriculture; Urban Design and Heritage. Where necessary, the specialists can be called to provide expert evidence at the hearing. The relevant specialist consultants will depend on the planning controls that apply to the site and the nature of your matter.
Similarly, we can advise whether our town planning advocacy or expert evidence services would be best suited to your circumstance. Our in house VCAT Advocate, Hew Gerrard, focuses on VCAT advocacy matters on behalf of both private and public sector clients and has many years experience preparing and presenting submissions at VCAT along with undertaking all other facets of the VCAT advocacy process. Hew enjoys a high VCAT success rate at Glossop Town Planning and is capable of offering VCAT advocacy services in a wide range of matters.
If it is expert evidence that you require, our Director John Glossop has decades of experience under his belt and a wealth of knowledge when it comes to appearing as an expert witness at VCAT.
Please note that this is not legal or town planning advice. This has been prepared to provide an overview of the VCAT appeal process and describe our role in it. As an experienced Town Planning firm, we can offer independent advice for your case to ensure you give yourself the best possible chance of success in your VCAT review.
To discuss your VCAT case further please call Glossop Town Planning on (03) 9329 2288.
