It may not always be clear whether parties have entered into a
lease or a licence agreement when that instrument contains
significant public access or other reservations. This issue was
clarified in the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria
in Living and Leisure Australia Ltd v Commissioner of State
Revenue [2018] VSCA 237 (Living and
Leisure).
The issue in Living and Leisure
The issue before the Court of Appeal was whether Living and
Leisure Australia Ltd (LLA) had the use of and
access to Crown land under a lease and was therefore subject to
land tax, or under a mere licence, in which case no land tax was
chargeable to LLA.
LLA and the Crown entered into two agreements pursuant to
s.28(2) of the Alpine Resorts Act 1983 (Vic), which gave
LLA the right to establish and operate ski lifts and associated
infrastructure on two parcels of land at the summits of Mount
Hothman and Falls Creek, to the exclusion of other parties with
commercial interests and
