1. LEGAL ISSUES AND INFORMATION ON NATURAL HAZARDS Michael Eburn, UNE; John Handmer, RMIT.

2. This paper will Consider the issue ‘can councils be liable for releasing risk information’? What if that reduces property values or restricts owners in making economic developments? What if the information is wrong?

3. Liability for withholding reasonably accurate, known risk information Duty of care… Councils have long term knowledge; Purchasers/owners do not, and may be vulnerable; so There may be a duty to give information, but not advice.

4. Liability for disclosing reasonably accurate, known risk information There are no reported cases of authorities being sued for releasing reasonably accurate hazard information. Councils have statutory obligations to collect and release information, as well as some legal protection.

5. Liability for disclosing inaccurate information Did that motivate Brisbane City Council? The Courier Mail reported that one landowner had: … paid top dollar -- more than $500,000 -- for a stately Queenslander … -- in total ignorance of the projected flood levels. … She may not have bought in Chelmer 14 months ago had she known about it. "I think it could have influenced my decision. "I think the report could have put me off buying here without a doubt. "We will be selling by the end of the year.

6. Liability for disclosing misleading information Port Stephens v Booth and Gibson.

7. The ‘Good faith’ defence… It was not good faith in: –Mid Density Developments Pty Ltd v Rockdale Municipal Council; –Armidale City Council v Finlayson; or –Port Stephens v Booth and Gibson.

8. Good Practice In order to build resilient communities it is vital that communities are made aware of the risks that they face. Where Councils make decisions in the hope of avoiding litigation they are likely to be over-cautious and allow property developers to achieve greater rights than strictly allowed by law.

9. Conclusion The risk of releasing reasonably accurate hazard information in a planned way is less than the risk of deliberately withholding it. Councils need to make information available in a careful way, with due consideration of how the information will be used and by whom. Develop a policy that explains how they will deal with requests for hazard information and then apply that policy.

10. Questions? Thank you for your attention. Thanks also to the Bushfire CRC for financial assistance.