The Gazette 1977

GAZETTE

JULY

the granting of the permission, whichever is the later. In respect of planning permissions issued after the 1st November, 1976, the five years commences to run from the date of the full unitary planning permission or, in other cases, from the date of the granting of the outline permission. An Approval has no relevance in relation to this time scale and it follows that a person who obtains outline permission only and who, thus, may not commence development until that outline permission has been followed by an Approval from the Planning Authority may actually lose — through lapse of time — his right to carry out the development before ever acquiring that right. The contradiction is explained in that such an applicant never had more than a contingent right to effect a development and his failure to obtain an Approval and carry out the development within five years from the date of the outline permission means that a contingent right never blossomed into a full right. I might mention that on the sixth line of page two of my Lecture the No. of the Commencement Order is correctly stated as being number 56 of 1977. S.I. Number 65 of 1977 refers to the Regulations. May I ask your assistance in bringing these corrections to the notice of participants at the Seminar. # Yours sincerely, RICHARD WOULFE, City Solicitor. AUTUMN SEMINAR The Committee has decided to explore new ground for the Autumn Seminar. As we have gravitated towards the south for most of our recent Seminars we have now decided to go north and it is proposed that the next Seminar be held in Bundoran, County Donegal, on the weekend of 14th/16th October 1977 on the following topics:— 1. The handling of Road Traffic Accident Claims. 2. Offences under the Road Traffic Acts. 3. Assessment of Actuarial Damages under the Civil Liability Act. 4. Professional Negligence. Full details of the Seminar will be issued as soon as arrangements have been finalised. The Officers and Committee of the Society of Young Solicitors for the year 1977/1978 are as follows:— Chairman Clare Cusack Treasurer William Earley Secretary Aine Hanley Committee Maeve Breen, Michael W. Carrigan, Terence Dixon, Andrew Donnelly, Mary Finlay, John Glackin, Derek Greenlee, Michael Irvine, John Lynch, George Mills, Tom O'Connor, Thomas E. O'Donnell, Raymond O'Neill, Norman T. J. Spendlove. COMMITTEE OF THE SOCIETY OF YOUNG SOLICITORS

An Bord Pleanala took over from the Minister for Local Government nearly all of the latter's appellate functions on 15th March 1977, including any undecided cases before the Minister on that date but not the Minister's functions under Section 86 of the 1963 Act (not yet in force). Mr. Woulfe, by dealing with each Section of the Act seriatim, has afforded the practitioner a great deal of assistance as a perusal of a requisite section followed by a quick reference to the appropriate part of the available script would suffice for most of what one might care to call the ordinary practical needs. It is not always easy for a lecturer to deliver the form of lecture which he may desire within the limited time available and he is therefore frequently left with the unenviable task of trying to confine his subject so that the more salient points are revealed. It was undoubtedly Mr. Woulfe's intention to give a broad general outline of the 1976 Act and this he accomplished in a most admirable and competent fashion. We are indebted to him for his contribution. Dear Sir, In the question—and—answer session after my Lecture on. the Local Government (Planning and Development) Act 1976 delivered at the Society's Seminar in Tralee on 24th April, 1977,1 gave an off-the-cuff opinion that where outline planning permission had been granted and had been followed by an approval the five year period for the wasting or withering of the permission commenced to run from the date of the Approval. I now wish to correct that opinion, as, on reflection, I do not think that it is correct. The word "permission" is not defined in the Local Government (Planning and Development) Act 1963 or in the 1976 Act. For the purposes of Part IV of the Local Government (Planning and Development) Regulations 1977 (S.I. Number 65 of 1977) "outline permission" is defined as a permission for development subject to the sub- sequent approval of the Planning Authority, "permission" includes outline permission and "Approval" is stated to mean an Approval consequent on an outline permission or an Approval which is required to be obtained under a condition subject to which a permission or an approval is granted under the Acts. There are, therefore, two categories of planning permissions, namely, full permissions which are complete in themselves and outline permissions which require to have attached to them a subsequent Approval in relation to reserved matters. There can be no development without a permission and an Approval cannot enjoy an independent existence because it is no more than an appendage to a permission and not a permission in itself. TTiis assessment of the legal position is re-enforced by Section 30 of the 1963 Act which Section provides for the revocation of permission; it does not authorise the revocation of an approval on the basis that if the outline permission to which it is attached stands revoked the approval falls with it: see The State (Cogley) v. Dublin Corporation - (1970) I.R. 244. Section 29 of the 1976 Act provides that a planning permission will expire five years from the 1st November, 1976 or from the date of 112 Limerick Corporation City Solicitor's Office, Old Courthouse, Merchant's Quay, Limerick. 18 May, 1977.