Robert Frost’s famous line — “Good fences make good neighbours” — is often treated as rural gospel. Mark the boundary, keep the peace, and move on. But a dispute now heading through the NSW Supreme Court shows how quickly a fence can become something far bigger than timber, wire and posts. In a case attracting...
Walk from the High Court of Australia towards the National Library, and you’ll encounter something unique in the Australian landscape: a monument not to a soldier or a politician, but to a court judgment. Etched in steel are the powerful words of Sir Gerard Brennan, from a decision that forever changed the nation: “The common...
On a crisp Friday morning in July 2025, as the winter sun cast long shadows across the red earth of the Mallee, three proud First Nations communities received news that their ancestors had been waiting to hear for more than two centuries. In a landmark Federal Court ruling that will forever change the landscape of...
In the quiet suburban streets of North Warrandyte, Melbourne, a seemingly trivial dispute over a 26-meter stretch of fence has erupted into a conflict that bears a striking resemblance to some of the world’s most contentious international territorial disputes. The recent controversy involving ABC personality Myf Warhurst and her neighbour Karla Martinez offers a fascinating...
In Melbourne’s ever-expanding suburbs, thousands of homeowners face a hidden legal obstacle that can derail redevelopment ambitions before a single plan is drawn. It’s not a zoning overlay or council policy—it’s a restrictive covenant, typically containing a deceptively simple phrase: “single dwelling only.” These private land-use restrictions, often registered decades ago, can thwart even the...
The test for acquiring title by adverse possession has not changed in many years. However, the application of that test is complex, taking into account a variety of situations that may affect a claim such as knowledge of the possessor and concurrent rights over the land.
In the case of Jones v. M the plaintiff sued for obstruction to a right-of way at West Melbourne. The plaintiff relied upon a certificate of title, which showed his title to the right-of-way, and the Court held that under the act passed last Session this gave him an indefeasible title to have the right-of-way free from obstruction.
An important decision was given in the Equity Court yesterday (sic), by Mr. Justice Molesworth, in Robertson v. Keith, affecting the value of certificates of title under the Transfer of Land Statute, which have been generally supposed to be unimpeachable, except by claims under adverse possession for 15 years.
The counties of Victoria are names of the divisions used in Victoria, Australia, for land administration purposes. Victoria is divided into 37 counties, which were gazetted in stages between 1849 and 1871 as Victoria was progressively opened up to British settlement.
A very early hand drawn map of Port Phillip c 1830s by William Thomas, Protector showing European and Aboriginal names including his record for the Aboriginal name for Port Phillip, more commonly known as Nerm or Neerim
