UNREGISTERED ARCHITECTS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 80, 27 June 1945, Page 3

UNREGISTERED ARCHITECTS

VALIDITY OF BY-LAW CHALLENGED CASE BEFORE SUPREME COURT Wellington, June 26. The validity of an Auckland City bylaw, which is stated to be similar to bylaws in force or contemplated in other parts of New Zealand, is challenged in a case which came before the Court of Appeal yesterday. The by-law limits the power of people, not professionally qualified, to plan or supervise buildings unless those doing the work are approved by the city engineer. An application was made to the Supreme Court by Leslie Hanna, architect, for an order quashing the by-law under section 12 of the By-laws Act. Mr Justice North - croft did not quash the by-law. though he amended it. Hanna has appealed from that decision. The by-law, No. 24, as adopted in August, 1939, prohibited any person building or altering a building if the es< timated cost exceeded £2OOO, except under the supervision and in accordance with plans prepared by a registered architect or registered civil engineer or structural engineer who was. ‘in the opinion of the city engineer, properly qualified to prepare the plans and supervise the execution of the building, provided that in exceptional circumstances the City engineer might Authorise the work without requiring the employment of a registered architect or registered civil dr structural engineer when in his opinion such special qualifications for the work were not necessary. The by-law; provided also that the city engineer 4hight designate any building, or structural work as coming under the clause, irrespective of its cost, where there was complicated design, or new methods or materials were to bo used or there were other reasons for him deeming it de#irable to do so. The grounds for applicant’s motion were that the council had not power to make such a by-law, that it Was unreasonable, unjust, involved oppressive interference with the rights of those subject to it, and the discretion given to the city engineer was so wide as to be unreasonable. Mr Justice Northcroft ordered that the by-law bo amended by deleting the words “who is, on the opinion of the city engineer, properly qualified to prepare plans for and supervise the execution of the said building or structural work,” expressing the opinion that those words placed in the hands of the city engineer a right to review and reject the qualifications of those who had passed the prescribed examinations in their professions. This was an unreasonable power to place in the hands of the city engineer, and to that extent the by-law was invalid, he stated. On the bench yesterday were the Chief Justice (Sir Michael Myers). Mr Justice Kennedy. Mr Justice Callan and Mr Justice Finlay. Mr T. P. Cleary, with him Mr W. King, appeared for an pellant. and Mr J. Stanton for the Auckland City Council. Among a number of affidavits submitted in the Supreme Court was one in which applicant stated that he had practised in Auckland as an architect since 1928. but was not a registered architect within the meaning of thr New Zealand Institute of Architects Act, 1913.