Wheeler v JJ Saunders [1995] 2 All ER 897

• Defendant got planning permission to house pigs in buildings bordering Plaintiff’s premises which he let as holiday cottages.

• Due to the resulting smell Plaintiff lost custom and sued Defendant for nuisance.

• CA held that this was a nuisance and that it was no defence for Defendant to argue that it had gained statutory permission, since this did not change the character of the area from a residential one to an agricultural one, and therefore did not alter the standards to be applied in determining whether there was nuisance.

  • Sanction by statutory body does NOT prevent the action being a nuisance. 

Gibson LJ

The Court should be slow to acquiesce in the extinction of private rights without compensation as a result of administrative decisions which cannot be appealed and are difficult to challenge.

Sir John May

• The considerations of public authorities are different from private law concerns.

• To say that approval of planning permission prevents a nuisance from being actionable where it would otherwise be so, would lead to the decision being overturned on the grounds of irrationality! This would make the job of such authorities very hard. 

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