Compulsory purchase - compensation - six-year time limit for reference to tribunal - overridden by specific agreement

BP Oil UK Ltd v Kent County Council: CA (Lords Justice Kennedy, Mummery and Carnwath): 13 June 2003

On 12 March 1992, the council made a compulsory purchase order in respect of land owned by BP.

The council served notice to treat and notice of entry pursuant to section 11(1) of the Compulsory Purchase Act 1965 on 20 January 1995, and entered the acquired land on 8 August 1995.

By a letter dated 8 February 1996, countersigned by BP, the council agreed to pay BP the amount of compensation as agreed or determined by the Lands Tribunal.

On 24 January 2002, BP served a notice of reference to the tribunal for determination of the compensation.

The tribunal held that since BP's statutory right for compensation fell within section 9 of the Limitation Act 1980, it was outside the six-year limitation period from the date of entry on the land.

BP appealed.

Edward Davidson QC (instructed by Morgan Cole, Swansea) for BP; Andrew Tait QC and Shourav Lahiri (instructed by County Council Director of Legal Services) for the council.

Held, allowing the appeal, that the acquiring authority's service of the notice of entry under section 11 was subject to its obligation to pay BP compensation, to be agreed or determined, in respect of the land acquired; that the agreement reached by letter dated 8 February 1996 was in line with section 3 of the Act, empowering the authority to agree with the landowner for a monetary consideration, giving BP an enforceable contractual right notwithstanding any statutory limit that would arise apart from the agreement; and that, accordingly, the notice of reference served within six years from the date of the agreement was valid.