The High Court has revisited the concept of what constitutes
"consideration" for the transfer of "dutiable
property" – and found that the Commissioner was entitled
to calculate duty on transfers of land by reference to not only
payments specified under the relevant contracts for sale of land
but also by reference to other payments made under a
"development agreement" (Commissioner of State Revenue v
Lend Lease Development Pty Ltd; Commissioner of State Revenue v
Lend Lease IMT 2 [HP] Pty Ltd; Commissioner of State Revenue v Lend
Lease Real Estate Investments Limited [2014] HCA 51).
The High Court determined that the contracts for sale of land
and the development agreement formed a single, integrated and
indivisible transaction for the sale and development of the land,
in a decision with far-reaching implications for the property and
infrastructure industries in particular, but which could also
affect other industries who use documents similar to a
