VicForests has been ordered to pay court costs of $1.65 million to Healesville-based environment group, Friends of Leadbeater’s Possum Inc., finally wrapping up a case that has run for 5 years.
The group launched the case against the state-owned native forest logging corporation in the Federal Court in late 2017. Both the Victorian and Federal governments intervened in the early stages.
In 2020 Justice Mortimer delivered an excoriating judgment against VicForests, finding that logging in 66 forest areas (coupes) had been, or would have been, conducted in breach of Victorian legislation and was therefore also in breach of Federal law. Justice Mortimer awarded costs of the case against VicForests.
VicForests appealed the critical judgment, ultimately succeeding on only one of 31 grounds. Several other proposed grounds were withdrawn before trial and the remainder failed. The Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) found that VicForests’ operations were exempt from Federal law as they were carried out under a state/federal deal known as a Regional Forest Agreement (RFA). This was enough to reverse Justice Mortimer’s finding in respect of Federal law.
However, the FCA reached its conclusion on the basis of an argument that had not been presented to Justice Mortimer and had only emerged during the appeal as a result of inquiries from the bench.
The FCA also found that the Friends had been “overwhelmingly successful” in establishing that VicForests contravened State laws with respect to the Leadbeater’s Possum and Greater Glider and that, “These factual findings were not disturbed on appeal”. Further, the Full Court observed that these issues had, “occupied much of the trial and a considerable portion of the hearing of the appeal”, and these costs were “wasted” due to VicForests’ conduct.
Accordingly, the Court of Appeal upheld Justice Mortimer’s award of costs and, even more unusually, added an order that, in spite of its successful outcome, VicForests must pay 50 per cent of the Friends’ costs of the appeal.
Since the case ended last year, VicForests and Friends of Leadbeater’s Possum Inc. have been negotiating the exact sum that would be paid.
The Friends group has now agreed to accept an offer from VicForests, resolving all outstanding issues.
“It is now more than 5 years since we commenced this action and it feels good to see it finally concluded,” said Steve Meacher, President of FLbP.
“The award of costs means that our brave, committed and generous legal team, all of whom conducted the case on capped or conditional terms, will finally be paid, as they should be.
“We are very grateful to Environmental Justice Australia, all members of our legal team, our extraordinary expert witnesses, the surveyors from the Fauna and Flora Research Collective and Wildlife of the Central Highlands who provided the on-ground evidence that proved our case and to the thousands of community members who supported us in pursuing our case,” he added.
