Highlands & Islands Airports Ltd Against The Committee For The Combined Common Grazings Of Melbost And Branahuie
| Jurisdiction | Scotland |
| Judge | Lord Drummond Young,Lord Menzies,Lord President |
| Neutral Citation | [2020] CSIH 8 |
| Docket Number | XA61/19 |
| Date | 28 February 2020 |
| Court | Court of Session |
| Published date | 28 February 2020 |
FIRST DIVISION, INNER HOUSE, COURT OF SESSION
[2020] CSIH 8
XA61/19
Lord President
Lord Menzies
Lord Drummond Young
OPINION OF THE COURT
delivered by LORD CARLOWAY, the LORD PRESIDENT
in the Special Case stated by the Scottish Land Court
in the application by
HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS AIRPORTS LTD
Applicants
against
THE COMMITTEE FOR THE COMBINED COMMON GRAZINGS OF MELBOST AND
BRANAHUIE
Respondents
______________
Applicants: Sir Crispin Agnew of Lochnaw Bt QC, E Gratwick (sol adv); Addleshaw Goddard LLP
Respondents: Upton; Turcan Connell
28 February 2020
Introduction
[1] This is a special case arising from the Land Court’s interlocutor of 6 February 2019
which declared that, for aught yet seen, certain areas of the land, which are owned by the
applicants at Stornoway Airport remain subject to crofting tenure. The process before the
2
Land Court had begun as an application for a declarator to the opposite effect, with a view
to the applicants selling a specific area to a local residential developer. The core issue is
whether the land was the subject of compulsory acquisition in the 1940s, with the effect that
any crofting rights would have been terminated without the need for any consent from the
Land Court (Highlands and Islands Oil and Gas Co v Bourbloch Common Grazings 1995 SLCR
110). The Land Court held that compulsory acquisition had not been demonstrated.
Legislation
Lands Clauses Consolidation (Scotland) Act 1845
[2] Section 6 of the 1845 Act (Power to purchase lands by agreement) states:
“… it shall be lawful for the promoters of the undertaking to agree with the owners
of any lands by the special Act authorized to be taken, … and with all parties having
any right or interest in such lands, … for the absolute purchase of any such lands…
and for the purchase of all rights and interests in such lands of what kind soever.”
Section 80 (Form of conveyances) provides:
“Conveyances of lands so to be purchased… may be according to the form of the
schedule (A.) respectively… or as near thereto as the circumstances of the case will
admit…”.
Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act 1919
[3] Section 1(1) of the 1919 Act (Tribunal for assessing compensation in respect of land
compulsorily acquired for public purposes) states:
“Where by or under any statute… land is authorised to be acquired compulsorily by
any Government Department…, any question of disputed compensation … shall be
referred to and determined by the arbitration of ... one of a panel of official
arbitrators …”.
Section 2 (Rules for the assessment of compensation) provides:
“In assessing compensation, an official arbitrator shall act in accordance with the
following rules:—
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