Burrumbeet Land Act 1991

The Act is built around a small set of statutory concepts and devices. Each concept is expressed in plain statutory text; the Act does not define additional technical terms.

• Permanent reservation and Order in Council. The Schedule identifies an Order in Council from 15 March 1892 that created a permanent reservation for “site for water supply purposes.” Section 3 revokes that Order in Council as specified in the Schedule. The Act treats the original reservation as an instrument susceptible to revocation by statute.

• Deeming to unalienated Crown land (s 4). The core legal technique is a deeming clause: the Schedule land is “deemed to be unalienated land of the Crown.” That phrase signals conversion of the land’s legal character to that of Crown land that is unalienated, which in many property regimes denotes land held by the Crown and available for Crown disposal under Crown property powers. The clause further states the land is “freed and discharged from all trusts, limitations, reservations, restrictions, encumbrances, estates and interests.” That language is broad and intended to remove existing legal burdens.

• Overriding other law (s 4). The deeming clause is introduced with express non obstante language: “Despite anything to the contrary in any Act or law,” the deeming and discharge operate. The Act therefore purports to resolve conflicts in favour of the new status accorded to the land.

• Non-payment of compensation (s 5). The Act expressly removes Crown liability to pay compensation “in respect of anything done under or arising out of this Act.” That provision narrows remedies or financial obligations that might otherwise arise from statutory change.

• Commencement by proclamation (s 2). The Act does not commence automatically on assent. Section 2 requires proclamation to bring the Act into force on a chosen day; the endnotes supply the actual commencement date used in practice.

• Scope by Schedule. The Schedule is the locational and historic record that ties the statutory change to a precisely described parcel (1.024 hectares in Parish of Burrumbeet, County of Ripon), the instrument revoked, and the extent of the revocation (“the entire reserve”).

• Purpose statement (s 1 and preamble). Section 1 declares a singular statutory purpose; the preamble gives Parliament’s explanatory account. The operative law is limited to revocation and deeming; it does not itself create the lease mentioned in the preamble.

These concepts operate together: the revocation (s 3) removes the reservation; the deeming (s 4) imposes a new status and extinguishes identified legal burdens; the non-compensation clause (s 5) removes a financial corollary; and commencement (s 2) controls timing. The Schedule provides the precise spatial and historical link. There are no definitions, schedules of rights or duties beyond these items.

The Act is spatially and substantively narrow. It affects identifiable sets of parties by changing the legal status of a single, listed parcel of land and removing declared liabilities. The source text allows clear statements about who is directly and indirectly affected.

Directly affected parties

• The Crown. The Act makes the land “unalienated land of the Crown” (s 4). That converts the land’s legal holding into Crown land and thus directly affects Crown property management options. The Crown also benefits from s 5, which removes compensation obligations “in respect of anything done under or arising out of this Act.”

• The present occupier. The preamble states an intention “to lease the land to its present occupier.” Although the Act does not itself create the lease, it creates a regime in which the Crown may proceed to lease. The present occupier stands to gain practical benefit if and when a lease is granted, because the reservation that previously constrained the land is revoked and legal encumbrances are cleared (s 4).

• Holders of legal interests recorded against the reserve. Section 4 expressly frees and discharges the land from “all trusts, limitations, reservations, restrictions, encumbrances, estates and interests.” Anyone who previously held such an interest to the extent it attached to the reserve is affected because the Act states those rights are discharged. The Act does not enumerate who those parties might be; the Schedule refers to the original reservation only.

Indirectly affected parties

• Administrative officers and departments with property functions. The conversion to unalienated Crown land alters the legal status that Crown agencies must administer. The Act does not specify which Crown authority will act, but property managers will be the actors who will take steps to lease or otherwise manage the land after revocation.

• Potential claimants or successors to any prior interests. Because the Act removes compensation (s 5) and discharges prior interests (s 4), persons who might otherwise have sought compensation or relied upon a trust, lease, easement or other interest are affected, inasmuch as their statutory claim may be curtailed by the Act’s terms.

Not affected in the absence of steps taken under the Act

• Third parties not holding an identified interest in the Schedule parcel. The Act operates only on the land described. Persons with no legal interest in the parcel will not be directly affected by the statutory revocation.

• The Act does not itself change the rights or obligations of persons under other parcels or reservations, because s 3 revokes only the specified Order in Council and s 4 deems only the land in the Schedule to be unalienated Crown land.

Practical consequences for the parties named in the Schedule

• The Schedule identifies the parcel precisely: Parish of Burrumbeet, County of Ripon, area 1.024 hectares, instrument reference and Government Gazette citations. Anyone undertaking title, historical or administrative enquiries will rely on those particulars to determine whether they hold interests that are discharged by s 4.

From the text, the principal beneficiaries are the Crown (through restored disposal flexibility and no compensation liability) and the present occupier (through the proposed lease opportunity), while previous holders of registered or unregistered interests in the reserve are the primary parties whose proprietary positions are altered by the statutory discharge.

The Act establishes rights and removes or clarifies others; it does not create an ongoing regime of duties, regulatory obligations or procedural steps beyond those implicit in its operation.

Rights created or clarified

• Crown’s property right in the parcel. By s 4 the land is “deemed to be unalienated land of the Crown.” That is a creation or clarification of Crown legal status over the land. The effect is to place the parcel within the category of Crown land that can be dealt with under Crown property powers outside the earlier reservation.

• Right to dispose or lease. The preamble records a proposal to lease to the present occupier. The Act does not itself create a lease or a statutory power to lease; it clears legal impediments (s 4), thereby enabling the Crown to grant a lease or other interest by separate instrument. The Act gives effect to the prerequisite step necessary to exercise such disposal powers.

Rights removed or discharged

• Trusts, reservations, restrictions, encumbrances and estates are “freed and discharged” (s 4). The text is broad and expressed as a statutory deeming: those legal incidents that previously attached to the land by reason of the reservation are declared to be removed. The Act therefore extinguishes or neutralises past legal incidents within the language used.

• Compensation claims against the Crown arising from this Act. Section 5 flatly states that no compensation is payable by the Crown “in respect of anything done under or arising out of this Act.” This removes a potential right to compensation which might otherwise exist under general principles or other statutory schemes.

Duties contemplated or required by the instrument

• Proclamation for commencement. Section 2 requires proclamation for the Act to come into operation. The Act imposes a temporal duty by its terms: the Act is not self-executing until proclamation is made.

• Parliamentary enactment of revocation. The duty to effect the revocation is a legislative act effected by s 3 and the Schedule. Once commenced, the revocation is operative by statute; no further statutory duty is set out for administrative actors in the Act.

Duties not created

• No administrative process or consultation duty is imposed on the Crown in relation to downstream acts such as leasing. The Act does not set conditions for leasing, tender processes, valuation, or compensation procedures. Any such procedural requirements would need to arise from other legislative instruments or administrative practice, not from this Act.

• No enforcement or penalty duties are contained. The Act provides no offences, penalties, enforcement mechanisms or enforcement agency powers.

Practical implications for counsel and officials

• For those advising the Crown or occupier, the key rights to note are the Crown’s newly-deemed status over the land (s 4) and the statutory exclusion of compensation (s 5). Those provisions change the legal landscape for negotiating or drafting a lease because they remove the reservation barrier and state that compensation claims related to the revocation will not be paid by the Crown.

• For persons with historic or prospective claims, the Act reduces available statutory remedies by discharging prior interests (s 4) and denying compensation (s 5). Identifying what precise legal interest existed before the revocation will require reference to the original instrument and any historical documentary record cited in the Schedule (Government Gazette entries noted in the Schedule).

The Burrumbeet Land Act 1991 contains no penalty, offence, enforcement or administrative sanction provisions. The Act’s operative provisions are declaratory and dispositional rather than penal. The following points follow directly from the text.

• No criminal or civil penalties. There are no sections in the Act that create offences, prescribe fines, imprisonment, or other punitive consequences for non-compliance. The Act’s functions are the revocation of a reservation (s 3), the deeming of Crown title (s 4) and an express bar on compensation (s 5). None of these provisions prescribes enforcement mechanisms.

• Enforcement by ordinary legal process only. Where a party claims a right affected by this Act, any remedies available would have to be sought under general law or other statutes, but the Act itself narrows remedies by its terms (for example, by discharging interests and excluding compensation). The Act does not authorise the taking of possession by force, the imposition of penalties, or other regulatory enforcement steps; any such action would need to be taken under other statutory powers available to the Crown or under contract.

• Administrative effect enforced by operation of statute. The revocation and deeming operate by statutory command once the Act comes into operation. The statutory operation itself replaces or modifies prior legal positions; the “enforcement” of that change is the legal consequence of the Act’s operation rather than a regulated enforcement step. Administrative officers will implement land management actions (e.g. grant of a lease) under separate instruments, but those subsequent instruments are not provided for in this Act.

• No administrative review or appeal mechanism provided. The Act does not establish a procedural avenue to challenge the revocation or the deeming within the text of the Act. Section 5 removes compensation liability but does not, for example, create a right to compensation or a reviewable decision procedure.

For practical purposes, enforcement of the Act’s effects occurs by statutory operation and subsequent administrative steps taken under other Crown property powers. Any dispute about the effect or validity of the Act’s operation would be litigated under general legal principles and available judicial review mechanisms, but the Act itself contains no specific enforcement or penalty regimes.

Section 4 of the Act expressly addresses inter-legislative relations. It is framed to operate notwithstanding contrary provisions in any Act or law and to remove existing legal burdens on the land. The source text therefore contains direct statements about interaction with other laws; any further inference must be traced to those statements alone.

Express override (s 4)

• The Act uses non obstante language: “Despite anything to the contrary in any Act or law, the land described in the Schedule is deemed to be unalienated land of the Crown, freed and discharged from all trusts, limitations, reservations, restrictions, encumbrances, estates and interests.” That language is an explicit statutory attempt to have the Act’s effect prevail over contrary statutory provisions or other legal instruments.

Effect on previously created statutory reservations

• The Act revokes an Order in Council creating a permanent reservation (s 3 and Schedule). Where a reservation existed by virtue of earlier statute or executive action, the Act declares that the reservation is revoked and that the land is now to be treated as unalienated Crown land. The Schedule cites the original instrument and Gazette references, which assist in resolving any conflicts about the identity of the land.

Effect on pre-existing trusts, limitations and interests

• The clause that the land is “freed and discharged from all trusts, limitations, reservations, restrictions, encumbrances, estates and interests” is broad. It is stated in absolute form and is intended to clear prior legal incidents that attached to the parcel as a result of the reservation or otherwise. The Act therefore interacts with and purports to displace other legal rights that operate over the land itself.

Effect on compensation or statutory indemnities under other law

• Section 5 declares that “No compensation is payable by the Crown in respect of anything done under or arising out of this Act.” This clause interacts directly with any other statutory or common law right to compensation that might be asserted in relation to the revocation or alteration of property rights. The Act’s text is explicit in excluding Crown liability arising from this Act.

Limits to the Act’s stated override

• The Act asserts an override “despite anything to the contrary in any Act or law,” which is broad in terms. The text does not, however, identify or list specific Acts being overridden. Practitioners will have to reconcile this Act’s provisions with the provisions and structures of other statutory regimes in operation; the starting point is the Act’s own non obstante phrasing and the Schedule’s precise land description.

Absence of cross-references to other property or administrative statutes

• The Act does not cross-reference property statutes, Crown Land Acts, or administrative procedures. It does not prescribe how the Crown must exercise its powers over land that is now unalienated. Consequently, interaction with other laws will occur in practice when the Crown acts under existing property statutes or administrative powers that govern disposal, lease-making, sale, or registration, but those interactions are not specified here.

Commencement and transitional timing

• Section 2, requiring proclamation for commencement, affects the timing of how and when interactions with other laws will arise. The Endnotes record that the Act “came into operation on 12 February 1992: Government Gazette 12 February 1992 page 314.” Until commencement, the Act’s interactions with other statutes are prospective only.

Interpretation Act implications (Endnotes)

• The Endnotes include material from the Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 regarding headings, examples, punctuation and other interpretative matters. Those interpretative rules may affect how the Act is read alongside other statutes insofar as style and headings are treated as part of the Act and examples or notes inserted after 1 January 2001 form part of the Act. Users should note that the Endnotes state rules on interpretation but the Burrumbeet Land Act itself remains a focused instrument.

In sum, the Act asserts primacy over contrary legal provisions for the specified parcel (s 4), revokes the earlier reservation (s 3), and excludes compensation (s 5). How those assertions play out in relation to other laws will depend on the precise rights that existed prior to revocation and on the administrative procedures that the Crown invokes when dealing with the land thereafter, but the first-order legal interaction is governed by the Act’s explicit non obstante and deeming language.

The Act’s endnotes supply a compact amendment record. According to the Table of Amendments and related endnotes, there have been no subsequent amendments to the Burrumbeet Land Act 1991 recorded at the date of publication of the version supplied.

Key items in the legislative history recorded within the source

• Parliamentary passage and assent. The Minister’s second reading speech dates are recorded: Legislative Assembly 15 November 1990; Legislative Council 19 March 1991 (Endnotes, General information). The Act was assented to on 26 March 1991 (Endnotes, General information).

• Commencement. Although s 2 provides for commencement “on a day to be proclaimed,” the Endnotes supply the operative commencement date used: “came into operation on 12 February 1992: Government Gazette 12 February 1992 page 314” (Endnotes, General information). That means that between assent (26 March 1991) and 12 February 1992 the Act was not in force.

• Table of amendments. The version notes and Table of Amendments state: “There are no amendments made to the Burrumbeet Land Act 1991 by Acts and subordinate instruments.” (Endnotes, Table of Amendments). The version number (Version No. 002) and the publication date “Version as at 1 June 2019” reflect the maintained legislative versioning, but no substantive legislative changes are recorded.

• Amendments Not in Operation. The endnotes state: “There are no amendments which were Not in Operation at the date of this publication.” This indicates no pending or future-dated amendments were attached to the Act as of the version date.

• Explanatory details. The endnotes list “No entries at date of publication” under Explanatory details. The only explanatory material within the source is the preamble and the second-reading speech dates cited earlier.

Interpretative and style notes

• The Endnotes include material from the Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 about headings and other interpretative matters (Endnotes, Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 (ILA)). Those matters relate to statutory drafting style and do not record substantive amendments to the Burrumbeet Land Act itself.

Practical consequence of the amendment record

• For practitioners researching the Burrumbeet Land Act, the record in the provided source indicates the Act remains in its original statutory form as enacted in 1991 and commenced in 1992, with no later statutory amendments recorded in this printed version. Any subsequent administrative actions or instruments (for example, a lease) would not be amendments to the Act; they would be separate executive or contractual instruments effected under other statutory powers.

The supplied source and endnotes do not record any litigation concerning the Burrumbeet Land Act 1991. The endnotes contain legislative metadata, second reading speech dates, assent and commencement dates, and notes on interpretation; they do not contain references to court decisions, reported cases, or judicial review matters arising from the Act.

What the source shows about litigation risk and avenues

• No recorded cases in source. The Act text and endnotes contain no references to judicial proceedings, challenges, appeals, or reported decisions. Thus, there is no litigation history contained within the provided material to summarise or cite.

• Potential disputes would be litigated elsewhere. Although the Act itself includes a broad discharge clause (s 4) and an exclusion of compensation (s 5), the Act does not preclude a party from challenging the correctness, scope or validity of those provisions in the courts. The Act does not create specialised judicial mechanisms or exclusive remedies; any challenge to the Act’s operation or the Crown’s subsequent action would proceed in the ordinary courts or tribunals under general law. The source does not record any such proceedings.

• No administrative appeals or statutory review procedures added. Because the Act does not set up administrative decision-making or statutory appeals, there is nothing in the text to suggest particular litigation pathways. The source contains neither a mandate for internal review nor a provision limiting judicial review.

Practical observation for researchers and advisers

• To establish whether litigation has occurred after the publication date of this version, a separate case-law search in appropriate law reports and databases would be required. The source itself provides no evidence of litigation and no judicial interpretation of the Act’s provisions.

• For present matters, the absence of recorded litigation in this version means there is no precedent captured here on how courts have interpreted the key provisions (for example, the scope of “freed and discharged” in s 4 or the constitutionality/scope of the prohibition on compensation in s 5). Advisers will therefore need to rely on general legal principles and, if necessary, judicial consideration in future proceedings.

The Burrumbeet Land Act 1991 is short but contains provisions with consequences that require careful attention. The following points are practical “gotchas” for counsel, land administrators, accountants and other professionals dealing with this Act, each grounded in the text.

Commencement requires proclamation (s 2) , timing matters

• The Act does not operate automatically on assent. Section 2 provides that the Act “comes into operation on a day to be proclaimed.” The Endnotes record the chosen day as 12 February 1992 (Government Gazette 12 February 1992 p 314). Any administrative or contractual action premised on the Act must check the actual commencement date. Acting before proclamation would be premature, because the statutory revocation and deeming take effect only on commencement.

The revocation targets a historic instrument , check the Schedule closely

• Section 3 revokes the Order in Council specified in the Schedule. The Schedule identifies the original reservation instrument and Gazette references. Practitioners must verify that the Schedule’s description exactly matches the parcel of land in question. A small error in parcel identification can create disputes about what was actually revoked.

Deeming clause is broad and absolute (s 4)

• Section 4 states that the land is “deemed to be unalienated land of the Crown, freed and discharged from all trusts, limitations, reservations, restrictions, encumbrances, estates and interests.” That language is extensive. Parties who may have believed themselves to hold enforceable interests attached to the reserve should note that the statute declares those incidents discharged. The practical implication is that recorded and unrecorded interests could be affected by the statutory discharge. Advisers should identify all prior instruments and interests recorded against or otherwise affecting the reserve before the revocation.

“Despite anything to the contrary in any Act or law” , an express override (s 4)

• Section 4’s non obstante phrasing purports to displace contrary statutory provisions, regulations, or other legal instruments. That makes it more difficult for other statutory claims that rely on the earlier reservation status to be enforced, at least insofar as the Burrumbeet Land Act’s express words apply to the parcel described in the Schedule. Practitioners should not assume other Acts operate to preserve interests unless those Acts contain explicit protective provisions immune to such overriding deeming clauses.

No compensation payable (s 5)

• Section 5 expressly repudiates Crown liability for compensation in relation to anything “done under or arising out of this Act.” For persons who might otherwise have expected compensation for extinguishment of an interest, this statutory bar is decisive in limiting a direct claim for compensation against the Crown under the terms of this Act. Advisers need to consider whether any other statutory or contractual indemnities survive, but the Act’s text removes compensation rights connected to the Act’s operation.

The Act does not itself grant a lease or prescribe the disposal mechanism

• The preamble states a proposal to lease the land to its present occupier, but the Act does not contain a provision granting a lease, setting terms, or naming the Crown authority authorised to lease. Practitioners must not conflate the revocation and deeming with the legal effect of a lease. A lease will require a separate instrument under the relevant Crown land or property management powers that are not specified in this Act.

No penalties, no process, no review steps

• The Act contains no administrative process for notice, consultation, valuation, tender or competitive disposal, nor does it provide a review or appeal mechanism for persons affected. If other procedures are expected by administrative practice or other statutes, those must be located outside this Act. The absence of process means the statutory change is swift in form, but operational steps to grant a lease will be governed by other laws or administrative policy.

Location-specific effect only

• The Act’s effects are tightly tied to the Schedule. It revokes a specific 1.024-hectare reserve in Parish of Burrumbeet, County of Ripon (Schedule). The Act does not provide a general template for revocation of other reserves. Users must therefore ensure that the parcel and legal history in the Schedule correspond to the land they intend to deal with.

No recorded amendments or litigation in source

• The endnotes show no amendments and no entries for litigation in the printed version supplied. That means there is no statutory change captured here to update obligations and no recorded judicial interpretation to clarify the scope of key phrases such as “freed and discharged.” Practitioners should be alert that absence of recorded material in this version does not preclude later developments outside the supplied source.

Documentary diligence required

• Because the Schedule references Government Gazette entries from 1892 (12 February 1892 p 797 and 18 March 1892 p 1378), researching the precise nature of the original reservation will require consulting those historical documents. Failure to verify the chain of instruments may lead to incorrect assumptions about what interests were in fact affected.

In summary, the principal “gotchas” arise from the Act’s broad deeming and non-compensation clauses, the need for precise identification of the parcel in the Schedule, the requirement for a proclamation to bring the Act into force, and the absence of procedural safeguards or a leasing mechanism in the Act itself. All of these are evident in ss 2-5 and the Schedule.

Compliance in the context of the Burrumbeet Land Act 1991 has two distinct dimensions: (A) what the Crown or its agents need to do to bring the Act into operation and use its effect, and (B) what private parties (for example, the present occupier or persons asserting prior interests) should do to protect their position. The Act itself is short and does not prescribe extensive compliance processes; the following steps state obligations and prudent actions derived directly from the Act’s provisions.

A. Steps for Crown agents and officials

1. Ensure proclamation is made before acting (s 2)

   • The Act “comes into operation on a day to be proclaimed” (s 2). Do not take actions premised on the Act’s legal effects until proclamation is published. Record the proclamation date carefully; the source records 12 February 1992 as the operative commencement (Endnotes, General information). Administrative actions taken prior to proclamation may lack the statutory foundation provided by the Act.

2. Verify identity and extent of the land in the Schedule

   • Cross-check the parcel particulars in the Schedule: Parish of Burrumbeet, County of Ripon, area 1.024 hectares, and Government Gazette citations (Schedule). Confirm that cadastral descriptions and present-day land identifiers match the Schedule so that the revocation and deeming apply to the intended parcel.

3. Compile the land history and identify prior interests

   • Although s 4 discharges trusts and encumbrances, it is prudent to list all historically recorded instruments (leases, easements, trusts, statutory reservations) to confirm the practical effect of “freed and discharged” and to identify persons potentially affected. Use the Gazette citations in the Schedule as starting points.

4. Prepare the separate leasing instrument (if leasing is intended)

   • The Act does not itself grant a lease. If the Crown intends to lease to the present occupier (as the preamble envisages), prepare the necessary separate lease instrument under relevant Crown land powers and administrative policies, and ensure the appropriate authority signs the lease. Ensure that any statutory preconditions under other property statutes (if applicable) are met; the Burrumbeet Land Act does not specify these.

5. Consider whether administrative policy requires notice, valuation or tender

   • The Act does not mandate procedural steps. If internal policy or other statutes require competitive process, valuation or public notice for disposal or lease of Crown land, implement those procedures alongside the legal mechanics provided by this Act.

6. Document compensation positions

   • Section 5 removes Crown liability to pay compensation “in respect of anything done under or arising out of this Act.” Record the legal rationale for any decision not to make compensation payments and be prepared to explain in internal records how s 5 was applied.

B. Steps for private parties (present occupier and persons asserting interests)

1. Confirm whether you are affected by the Schedule land description

   • Use the parish/county/area and Gazette references in the Schedule to confirm whether your interest is within the specified parcel. If yes, the statutory deeming and discharge provisions (s 4) apply to your parcel once the Act has commenced.

2. For the present occupier: pursue a lease through separate legal steps

   • The preamble envisages leasing to the present occupier, but the Act does not create a lease. The occupier should seek to formalise any lease in a separate instrument, negotiating terms and conditions with the Crown or its property agency.

3. For holders of historical interests: identify legal remedies and the effect of s 5

   • If you assert a trust, easement, lease or other interest with respect to the Schedule land, identify whether the interest was extinguished by the Act’s discharge wording (s 4). Note that s 5 states no compensation is payable by the Crown “in respect of anything done under or arising out of this Act.” Legal advice is recommended to evaluate whether any remedy exists outside the terms of this Act.

4. Keep documentary evidence

   • Maintain copies of any historical instruments, correspondence and filings that record your interest. Although the Act’s text discharges legal incidents, documentary records will be necessary to support any claim or to negotiate a settlement with the Crown.

C. Administrative records and audit trail

1. Publish and archive the proclamation and Gazette notices

   • Ensure the proclamation and any subsequent Crown instruments (such as a lease) are published or lodged in the appropriate public registers, and retain internal records showing the date of proclamation and the basis for any decision not to pay compensation.

2. Maintain a register of actions taken post-revocation

   • Record any leases, licences or other dealings with the land after it has been deemed unalienated Crown land, with copies of signed instruments, valuations, approvals and any internal authorisations.

D. Practical counsel points

1. Don’t assume other statutory protections automatically survive

   • The Act’s non obstante phrase (s 4) directs that the deeming operates “despite anything to the contrary in any Act or law.” Where other statutes or instruments might normally afford protection to an affected party, do not assume those protections survive without specific legal analysis.

2. Separate property management steps from the legislative change

   • The Act clears the reservation and legal encumbrances; separate legal steps are needed to grant any lease or to otherwise dispose of the land. Ensure any proposed lease is lawful under the Crown’s general property powers or other enabling instruments.

3. Obtain legal advice if you are a potential claimant

   • For persons who consider themselves to hold prior interests, specialist legal advice is required to consider whether any remedy exists beyond the express terms of the Act. The statutory bar on compensation (s 5) is explicit in the Act and will be a major legal obstacle to an immediate statutory compensation claim arising from this Act.

Following these steps will align operational practice with the statutory text of ss 2-5 and the Schedule, and will create a documented compliance trail for any future enquiries or disputes.