R (on the application of Malpass) v County Council of Durham
Reference:
[2012] EWHC 1934 (Admin)
Comment:
The claimant, a local resident, sought judicial review of the defendant council’s rejection of an application to register land at Consett as a new town or village green under section 15 of the Commons Act 2006 on the basis that it had not been used by local inhabitants for lawful sports and pastimes “as of right”, having been held by the council for the purposes of public recreation. The decision was quashed, and the matter remitted for redetermination, on the ground that reference to dicta of Lord Scott in R(Beresford) v Sunderland City Council [2004] 1 AC 889 had led to a flaw in the council’s reasoning.