Which councils are easiest to work with?
Insights from the NSW Land & Environment Court
Inside the Land & Environment Court
A data-driven analysis of 20 years of NSW LEC decisions — what conciliates, what goes to hearing, and what it means for architects and developers.
The Big Picture: 20 Years of Change
How the balance between conciliation and contested hearings has shifted since 2004.
Conciliation identified via catchwords. Commissioner hearings = Commissioner total − conciliation. Pre-2015 omitted (catchword tagging unreliable).
Pre-2015 conciliation counts use body-text proxy (approximate). Hearings = (Comm. total − Comm. conciliation) + Judge total.
The odds of settling are now roughly even
In 2024, 51% of LEC matters resolved by conciliation. If you're heading to court on a development appeal, there's an almost coin-flip chance you'll reach a negotiated outcome rather than face a contested hearing. This matters for your cost and timeline planning — budget for conciliation amendments, not just a binary win/lose.
Commissioners run hearings too — not just conciliations
A common misconception is that Commissioner matters are mostly conciliation conferences. In reality, 41% of Commissioner decisions in 2024 were contested hearings. If your project is before a Commissioner, prepare for both outcomes. Your design may still face full adversarial testing.
Which Councils Conciliate?
Conciliation rates for 45 councils with 10+ LEC matters (2020–2024). The variation is striking.
Councils with 10+ LEC matters, 2020–2024. Hearing = Commissioner contested + Judge decision.
Know your council before you appeal
If you're developing in Western Sydney (Liverpool 77%, Camden 77%, Cumberland 73%, Blacktown 66%), your chances of a negotiated outcome are well above average. But in regional/coastal areas (Tweed 33%, Central Coast 43%, Kiama 40%) and some inner-city councils (Lane Cove 39%, Burwood 40%), expect a higher likelihood of a full hearing. Factor this into your feasibility.
Design flexibility is your conciliation lever
In high-conciliation councils, the Court expects you to come to conciliation with amendable plans. Rigid designs that can't be modified rarely reach agreement. The best-performing councils are those where applicants bring genuine willingness to amend — and architects who can sketch alternatives on the spot are invaluable in that process.
Inner-city doesn't mean easy
Mosman (46%), Northern Beaches (49%), Randwick (49%), and North Sydney (55%) all sit at or below average despite being established metro councils. Complex planning controls, heritage overlays, and vocal communities in these areas make conciliation harder than you might expect.
What Issues Are Hardest to Resolve?
Conciliation rates by planning issue — some disputes settle easily, others almost never do.
| Privacy | 29.7% |
| Overshadowing | 30.8% |
| Setbacks | 34.9% |
| Trees | 35.4% |
| Bulk & scale | 36.4% |
| Contamination | 66.1% |
| Stormwater | 60.0% |
| Flood (general) | 57.5% |
| Bushfire | 50.6% |
| Parking | 50.8% |
Dashed line = overall LEC average (58.7%). Keywords below the line are harder to conciliate. Based on body-text search across all LEC decisions 2020–2024.
Privacy and overshadowing are your biggest litigation risks
When a case turns on privacy (29.7% conciliation) or overshadowing (30.8%), it almost always goes to a full hearing. These are zero-sum disputes — fixing the neighbour's concern usually means reducing your building. Invest heavily in shadow diagrams and privacy screening at DA stage. If these issues trigger the appeal, expect to fight, not negotiate.
Technical issues can usually be resolved by conditions
Contamination (66.1%), stormwater (60%), and bushfire (50.6%) have above-average conciliation rates because they're fixable. A contamination report, a stormwater management plan, or a bushfire-compliant design can be agreed as conditions of consent during conciliation. These issues add cost but they rarely kill a project in court.
Flooding is different from stormwater
"Stormwater" appears in 52% of all decisions and conciliates at the average rate (60%) — it's mentioned routinely even when not contentious. "Flooding" appears in 14% of decisions with a much lower 44.8% conciliation rate. When flooding is genuinely at issue, the technical complexity and risk make it much harder to reach agreement.
Architecture and the LEC
What the data reveals about how architectural practice intersects with the Court.
Court frequency doesn't mean poor design
The firms that appear most often in LEC decisions tend to work in planning-contentious areas (eastern suburbs, inner city) on project types that routinely attract objections — medium-density residential, alterations in heritage areas, multi-unit development. A high LEC count reflects market position and project volume, not design quality.
Conciliation rates vary enormously between firms
Among firms with 5+ LEC matters, conciliation rates range from as low as 12.5% to as high as 100%. Some practices consistently resolve matters by agreement, while others proceed to contested hearings far more often than the LEC average. This variation suggests that a firm's approach to design flexibility and negotiation has a measurable impact on outcomes.
Your conciliation rate is a competitive signal
The data shows that some firms resolve the vast majority of their LEC matters by agreement, while others go to hearing far more often. A high conciliation rate suggests a practice that can adapt designs under pressure — a valuable quality when developers are comparing firms. Track your own rate and consider it part of your pitch.
Choose your architect with LEC in mind
If your site is likely to end up in court, the architect you choose matters. Firms with strong conciliation track records bring experience in the negotiation-under-pressure dynamic of s34 conferences. Ask potential architects: how many of your LEC matters have resolved at conciliation?
What This Means for Your Next Project
5 things to know
1. Privacy and overshadowing are your biggest risks — address them before DA submission, not at conciliation.
2. Come to conciliation with amendable plans. Rigid designs don't settle.
3. Commissioner hearings are real hearings — 41% of Commissioner decisions are contested, not conciliation.
4. Your LEC track record is public data. Conciliation rates vary hugely between firms — make yours a selling point.
5. Technical issues (contamination, stormwater) resolve by conditions. Design issues (bulk, privacy) rarely do.
5 things to know
1. Know your council's conciliation rate before you appeal. It ranges from 33% to 81%.
2. Budget for conciliation — amended plans, expert reports, and conditions — not just legal fees.
3. If your refusal reason is privacy or overshadowing, prepare for a hearing. If it's stormwater or contamination, conciliation is likely.
4. Choose architects with LEC conciliation experience for contentious sites.
5. Western Sydney councils conciliate more. Inner-city and coastal councils are tougher.
All data sourced from NSW Caselaw via advanced search. Conciliation outcomes identified by "conciliation" in decision catchwords (reliable from 2015). Corrected methodology: hearings = (Commissioner total − Commissioner conciliation) + Judge decisions. Period: 2004–2024 for time series; 2020–2024 for council, keyword, and architecture analyses. Council analysis covers 45 councils with 10+ matters. Architecture insights based on analysis of firms mentioned in LEC decisions by exact phrase in body text. Keyword analysis searched 16 planning issue terms in both body text and catchwords. Not every LEC decision is published on Caselaw — true volumes may be higher.