Who has the power to acquire land by compulsory process?
The Acquisition Act does not itself empower a public authority to acquire land compulsorily – this lies in separate legislation, such as the Electricity Supply Act 1995 (NSW), Transport Administration Act 1988 (NSW), Crown Lands Act 1989 (NSW) and Local Government Act 1993 (NSW) (Empowering Act). An Empowering Act will define the purposes for which land may be acquired and will identify the acquiring authority which has the right to do so. This authority may be a Minister, a head of a department, a statutory body or agent of the State. It is important for the correct authority to acquire the land to ensure validity of the acquisition. What can be compulsorily acquired? An acquiring authority is vested with the power to acquire land (including fixtures) or an interest in land, such as existing easements or leases over the affected property. This includes a right to acquire a new interest which did not previously exist (i.e. an easement or a temporary construction lease in favour of the
