When should private property rights give way to the public interest?

Since Queensland Wire Industries Pty Ltd v Broken Hill Pty Co Ltd (1989) 167 CLR 177 it has been recognised that corporations with substantial market power are subject to special responsibilities and restraints that corporations without market power are not. In NT Power Generation Pty Ltd v Power and Water Authority (2004) 219 CLR 90 McHugh A-CJ, Gummow, Callinan and Heydon JJ in their joint reasons stated (at [76]), that s 46 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) (CCA) can operate not only to prevent firms with substantial market power from doing prohibited things, but also compel them positively to do things they do not want to do. Their Honours also stated (at [126]) that the proposition that a private property owner who declines to permit competitors to use the property is immune from s 46 is “intrinsically unsound”. However, the circumstances in which a firm with substantial power must accommodate competitors, and private property rights give way to the public interest are uncertain. The purpose of this Note is to consider recent developments in two areas of the CCA where the law requires private property rights to give way to the public interest. The first part of the Note considers two recent cases which clarify the circumstances in which s 46 of the CCA can be used to compel a firm with substantial market power to accommodate a competitor and allow the competitor to make use of private property rights in the public interest. Secondly, on 12 February 2014 the Minister for Small Business, the Hon Bruce Billson,released the Productivity Commission’s Final Report, on the National Access Regime in Pt IIIA of the CCA (National Access Regime, Inquiry Report No 66, Canberra). Pt IIIA provides for the processes by which third parties may obtain access to infrastructure owned by others in the public interest. The Report recommends that Pt IIIA be retained but makes a number of suggestions for its reform, some of which will be briefly considered.

Property : an instrumental institution for environmental governance

Property in an elusive concept. In many respects it has been regarded as a source of authority to use, develop and make decisions about whatever is the subject matter of this right of ownership. This is true whether the holder of this right of ownership is a private entity or a public entity. Increasingly a right of ownership of this kind has been recognised not only as a source of authority but also as a mechanism for restricting or limiting and perhaps even prohibiting existing or proposed activities that impact upon the environment. It is increasingly therefore an instrument of control as much as an instrument of authorisation. The protection and conservation of the environment are ultimately a matter of the public interest. This is not to suggest that the individual holders of rights of ownership are not interested in protecting the environment. It is open to them to do so in the exercise of a right of ownership as a source of authorisation. However a right of ownership – whether private or public – has become increasingly the instrument according to which the environment is protected and conserved. This article addresses these issues from a doctrinal as well as a practical perspective about how the environment is managed. It does so in five ways: ●considering briefly property as a concept ●reviewing property in its historical context ●analysing property as a human right ●examining property in natural resources ●reviewing judicial approaches to property in natural resources.

The human embryo as property? Cryopreservation and the challenges for law

The development of the new reproductive technologies has presented significant challenges for policy makers and law reformers. This article focuses on the particular challenges posed by cryopreservation of embryos. These issues are analysed through discussion of relevant Australian statutory provisions and United States case law. The article concludes with a consideration of whether the property model provides an appropriate framework for reproductive material.

Exploration of mechanisms underlying the strain-rate-dependent mechanical property of single chondrocytes

Based on the characterization by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), we report that the mechanical property of single chondrocytes has dependency on the strain-rates. By comparing the mechanical deformation responses and the Young’s moduli of living and fixed chondrocytes at four different strain-rates, we explore the deformation mechanisms underlying this dependency property. We found that the strain-rate-dependent mechanical property of living cells is governed by both of the cellular cytoskeleton (CSK) and the intracellular fluid when the fixed chondrocytes is mainly governed by their intracellular fluid which is called the consolidation-dependent deformation behavior. Finally, we report that the porohyperelastic (PHE) constitutive material model which can capture the consolidation-dependent behavior of both living and fixed chondrocytes is a potential candidature to study living cell biomechanics.

Direct and quantitative detection of bacteriophage by "hearing" surface detachment using a quartz crystal microbalance

We show that it is possible to detect specifically adsorbed bacteriophage directly by breaking the interactions between proteins displayed on the phage coat and ligands immobilized on the surface of a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). This is achieved through increasing the amplitude of oscillation of the QCM surface and sensitively detecting the acoustic emission produced when the bacteriophage detaches from the surface. There is no interference from nonspecifically adsorbed phage. The detection is quantitative over at least 5 orders of magnitude and is sensitive enough to detect as few as 20 phage. The method has potential as a sensitive and low-cost method for virus detection.

Analysing the Prospects of a Successful Application Under s 180 of the Property Law Act 1974 (Qld)

Section 180 of the Property Law Act 1974 (Qld) makes provision for an applicant to seek a statutory right of user over a neighbour’s property where such right of use is reasonably necessary in the interests of effective use in any reasonable manner of the dominant land. In recent years, the Queensland courts have been confronted with a number of such applications. Litigation has also been common in New South Wales which has a statutory provision in largely similar terms. This article seeks to identify those factors that have underpinned successful applications, the obstacles that an applicant may encounter and the considerations that have guided the courts when considering the associated issues of compensation and costs.

Assessing the property market impact of stigma removal : high voltage overhead transmission lines removal in Wellington, NZ

This thesis advances the understanding of the impact of stigma on property values. A case study in Wellington, New Zealand, enabled hedonic modelling and an empirical analysis to determine the impact of the stigma from the high voltage transmission line structure and how long the stigma remained after removal. The results reveal a substantial difference between the discount applied to individual properties while the structure is in place, as compared to the overall increase in neighbourhood value once the structure, which created the stigma, is removed.

Federal Court Rules 027 r 11 - Subpoena to give evidence

In Australian Prudential Regulation Authority v Rural and General Insurance Let [2004] FCA 933, Gyles J considered what he described as "a novel question", namely, whether taking steps to prepare to give oral evidence when subpoenaed to attend for that purpose, including the obtaining of legal advice and assistance, could be recovered by the witness under O 27 r 11 of the Federal Court Rules

Practice and Procedure - Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999 r 212(2) - whether draft expert reports must be disclosed

In Mitchell Contractors Pty Ltd v Townsville-Thuringowa Water Supply Joint Board [2004] QSC 329, Douglas J considered the issue of broad significance for litigation practitioners of whether draft expert reports fall within the description in r212(2) of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999 (Qld) of documents "consisting of a statement or report of an expert" and are therefore not privileged from disclosure.

Property-performance control of multidimensional, hierarchical, single-crystalline ZnO nanoarchitectures

Diverse morphologies of multidimensional hierarchical single-crystalline ZnO nanoarchitectures including nanoflowers, nanobelts, and nanowires are obtained by use of a simple thermal evaporation and vapour-phase transport deposition technique by placing Au-coated silicon substrates in different positions inside a furnace at process temperatures as low as 550 °C. The nucleation and growth of ZnO nanostructures are governed by the vapour–solid mechanism, as opposed to the commonly reported vapour–liquid–solid mechanism, when gold is used in the process. The morphological, structural, compositional and optical properties of the synthesized ZnO nanostructures can be effectively tailored by means of the experimental parameters, and these properties are closely related to the local growth temperature and gas-phase supersaturation at the sample position. In particular, room-temperature photoluminescence measurements reveal an intense near-band-edge ultraviolet emission at about 386 nm for nanobelts and nanoflowers, which suggests that these nanostructures are of sufficient quality for applications in, for example, optoelectronic devices.

Perils to people and property : valuation practices in a water world

Recent international experiences have reinforced the peril to people and property from rising sea levels and associated water events. The related risks, while perhaps more obvious for properties located in coastal regions, can also impact upon inland properties. These risks are slowly influencing changes to planning practices and attitudes. This paper examines these risks from the perspective of land values and identifies the matters, and processes, that should be adopted in valuation practices.

Design and modification of three-component randomly incorporated copolymers for high performance organic photovoltaic applications

In this study we report the molecular design, synthesis, characterization, and photovoltaic properties of a series of diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) and dithienothiophene (DTT) based donor-acceptor random copolymers. The six random copolymers are obtained via Stille coupling polymerization using various concentration ratios of donor to acceptor in the conjugated backbone. Bis(trimethylstannyl)thiophene was used as the bridge block to link randomly with the two comonomers 5-(bromothien-2-yl)-2,5-dialkylpyrrolo[3,4-c]pyrrole-1, 4-dione and 2,6-dibromo-3,5-dipentadecyl-dithieno[3,2-b;2′,3′-d] thiophene. The optical properties of these copolymers clearly reveal a change in the absorption band through optimization of the donor-acceptor ratio in the backbone. Additionally, the solution processability of the copolymers is modified through the attachment of different bulky alkyl chains to the lactam N-atoms of the DPP moiety. Applications of the polymers as light-harvesting and electron-donating materials in solar cells, in conjunction with PCBM as acceptor, show power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of up to 5.02%.