Cases - Re London Tilbury and Southend Railway Company and Trustees of Gower's Walk Schools
Record details
- Name
- Re London Tilbury and Southend Railway Company and Trustees of Gower's Walk Schools
- Date
- (1889)
- Citation
- 24 QBD 326
- Legislation
- Keywords
- Rights of light - Railways Clauses Act 1845 - Town and Country Planning Act 1990
- Summary
-
The plaintiff demolished a building in respect of which rights of light had been acquired and constructed a new building. Some of the new windows coincided with the original windows. Others occupied entirely different positions. Shortly afterwards, a railway company, in the exercise of its statutory powers erected a warehouse that obstructed light to the plaintiff's building. The plaintiff claimed statutory compensation in relation to all windows that were obstructed. The Court of Appeal decided that, under the Railways Clauses Act 1845 (which had similar compensation provisions to those applicable to the Town and Country Planning Act 1990), the plaintiff was entitled to compensation for the injury both to the old and the new windows. It was impossible to obstruct the new windows, without at the same time obstructing the old windows.
Lopes LJ explained that, at common law, the plaintiff would have been entitled to an injunction to prevent obstruction to the windows which had acquired rights to light, which would also have prevented obstruction to the new windows. But, as a result of the legislation, the plaintiff had no such right and was compelled to submit to the obstruction of both the new and old windows. Therefore, the plaintiff was entitled to compensation for the obstruction of both.