Supreme court rejects complaints from Perth woman Cilla Carden, saying they were ‘not reasonable’

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A vegan in Western Australia who took her neighbours to the supreme court with complaints about the smell of meat and fish from their barbecues has said she is considering further potential legal action.

The court and the state’s administrative tribunal have both thrown out Cilla Carden’s complaints about her neighbours, including their cooking smells, cigarette smoke, chairs scraping on concrete, reflective light and the sounds of children playing basketball and pet birds.

Carden, a massage therapist who lives at Girrawheen in Perth’s north, says the ongoing dispute has robbed her of quality of life and claimed her neighbours actions are deliberate.

“They’ve put it there so I smell fish, all I can smell is fish,” Carden told Nine. “I can’t enjoy my backyard, I can’t go out there.”

She says she hasn’t been able to sleep and just wants to live her life in peace.

The legal saga has dragged on since August 2017.

One neighbour told Nine he had removed the barbecue and had stopped his children playing basketball.

“Ms Carden’s demands were proven to be not reasonable and indeed were to the detriment of the other owners’ ability to enjoy their lots in a reasonable and acceptable manner,” another neighbour said in a statement to Nine.

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Supreme court chief justice Peter Quinlan dismissed Carden’s appeal last month.

He ruled after considering all material he was not satisfied “that there is an arguable case that the tribunal denied Ms Carden procedural fairness or acted to her disadvantage so as to cause a miscarriage of justice”.

“Ms Carden was given a fair opportunity to present her case, and the learned tribunal member conducted the proceedings fairly and appropriately,” the judgment said.

He encouraged all parties to “direct their considerable energies towards the resolution of their differences as best they can”.

Legal aid organisations have warned legal intervention in neighbourhood disputes could be expensive and lengthy.

“If you and your neighbour can’t reach agreement, dispute resolution may be an easier, quicker and cheaper way to resolve matters,” Legal Aid Victoria says.