57 & 58 Vict. from the centre of the roadway of any street or way (being a highway). c. ccxiii. s. 13. (2) Where the Council after consulting the local authority shall deem it expedient in the public interest either by reason of the length or importance of the street or way or by reason of the street or way forming or being so situate as to be likely to form part of an important line of communication or for other sufficient reason that the prescribed distance from the centre of the roadway of any such street or way should where such roadway is used for the purpose of carriage traffic be greater than 20 feet it shall be lawful for the Council to determine that the prescribed distance shall be such greater distance not exceeding 30 feet from the centre of the roadway of such street or way on either side or both sides as the Council shall see fit to determine This sub-section shall not apply to any street or way within two miles of Saint Paul's Cathedral. (3) In case the person intending to erect form or extend any such building structure forecourt or space shall be dissatisfied with the determination of the Council that the prescribed distance shall be greater than 20 feet from the centre of the roadway he may appeal to the tribunal of appeal against such determination of the Council. (4) The Council may in any case where they think it expedient consent to the erection formation or extension of any building structure forecourt or space at a distance less than the prescribed distance from the centre of the roadway of any such street or way and at such distance from the centre of such roadway and subject to such conditions and terms (if any) as they may think proper to sanction Provided that the giving of such consent by the Council shall not in any way affect any rights of the owners of adjoining land Before giving such consent the Council shall communicate to the local authority their intention to give the same Any person dissatisfied with the determination of the Council under this sub-section may appeal to the Tribunal of Appeal. (5) Provided that where any person intends to alter or re-erect a building or structure existing either at the commencement of this Act or at any time within seven years previously and which shall not be or shall not have been in conformity with the provisions of this section relating to new buildings and structures such person may cause to be prepared plans showing the s. 13. extent of such building or structure (or in the event of 57 & 58 Vict. such building or structure having ceased to exist before c. ccxiii. the commencement of this Act or having been accidentally destroyed the best plans available under all the circumstances of the case) and the extent of the forecourt or other open space (if any) between any external wall of such building or structure and the roadway and may cause such plans to be submitted to the district surveyor who. shall (if reasonably satisfied with the evidence of their accuracy) certify the same under his hand and such certificate shall be taken to be conclusive evidence of the correctness of the plans Thereupon it shall be lawful for such person to alter or re-erect such building or structure but so that no land within the prescribed distance shall be occupied by the re-erected building or structure or the forecourt or such other open space as aforesaid (if any) except that which was occupied within the prescribed distance by the previously existing building structure forecourt or open space: If such person should fail to submit such plans to the district surveyor or the district surveyor or the Tribunal of Appeal should refuse to certify the accuracy of the same such person shall in altering or rebuilding the said building or structure be bound by the preceding provisions of this section in all respects as though no building or structure had previously existed upon the land within the period aforesaid Provided always, that no dwelling-house to be inhabited or adapted to be inhabited by persons of the working class shall without the consent of the Council be erected or re-erected within the prescribed distance to a height exceeding the distance of the front or nearest external wall of such building from the opposite side of such street and that no building or structure shall be converted into such dwelling-house within the prescribed distance so as to exceed such height: Provided that this section shall not prevent the reerection of any such dwelling-house erected previously to the passing of this Act by a local authority. (6) Nothing in this section shall affect the exercise of any powers conferred upon any railway company by any special Act of Parliament for railway purposes. 'New Building.'-What is a 'new building' within the meaning of the Act is defined by sect. 5 (6), ante, p. 11. The expression building' is not, however, defined, but see the note to sect. 5 (6) with regard to its meaning. The provisions of the previous Acts which correspond with c. ccxiii. s. 13. 57 & 58 Vict. and are superseded by the provisions of the present section, extended to buildings, structures, or erections.' The term ' erections' has been omitted in the present section, and a structure to be within the section must presumably be ejusdem generis with a building. An addition to an old building was held in the case of Shiel v. the Mayor of Sunderland, ante, p. 14, not to be a new building,' within byelaws made by a local authority under an Act which enabled the authority to make byelaws with respect to 'new buildings.' But by section 209, post, p. 300, any addition to or alteration of a building is, so far as regards such addition or alteration, to be subject to the provisions of the Act, and of any byelaws thereunder relating to new buildings. 'External wall.'-This expression is defined by sect. 5 (15), ante, p. 17. 'Prescribed distance.'-Sect. 5 (5), ante, p. 10, contains a definition of this expression. 'Centre of the roadway.'-This expression is defined by sect. 5 (4), ante, p. 9. 'Extend.'-This word must relate to the extension of the forecourt or space between the external wall of the new building or new structure and the roadway. 'Street or way.'-These expressions are defined in subsects. 1 and 2 of sect. 5, ante, pp. 6 and 9. In order that the section should be applicable the street or way must be a highway, as to which term see the note to sect. 5 (1), ante, p. 9. The distance at which buildings are to be erected in streets or ways, which are not highways, is regulated by sect. 16, post, p. 72. 'Any direction.'-These words were first introduced in sect. 34 of the London Council (General Powers) Act, 1890, which section extended the provisions of sect. 6 of the Metropolitan Building (Amendment) Act, 1878, which corresponded to the provisions of subsection 1, to ‘buildings, structures, or erections.' Both these sections are repealed by sect. 215, post, p. 302, and the provisions of the present section substituted therefor. The words in any direction' do not appear capable of having any practical effect given to them. 'Greater distance.'-Under sect. 12, ante, p. 60, the Council has a similar power to that contained in subsection 2 of requiring streets in certain cases to be widened to a width greater than 40 feet, but not greater than 60 feet. Where the Council avails itself of the power given by subsection 2, to require a greater distance to be left between the boundary wall or fence and the roadway, it will be liable under sect. 15 (2), post, p. 70, to pay the owner of any land or buildings required for the greater distance compensation for any loss or injury he may sustain by reason of such requirement. 'Local authority.'-This expression is defined by sect. 5 (42), ante, p. 38. Appeal.'-The Tribunal of Appeal is constituted by sect. 175, post, and that and the following sections regulate its powers S. 13. and the procedure upon appeals to it. Appeals under this section 57 & 58 Vict. are to be lodged at the offices of the Tribunal within fourteen c. ccxiii. days after notice of the determination, and notice of the appeal is to be given within the same period to the Council, and where the original applicant is not the appellant to such applicant. Notice of an appeal under subsect. 3 is also to be given to the Local Authority; and notice of an appeal under subsect. 4 is also to be given to the owner and occupiers of the nearest building on each side of the proposed building; see the Regulations of the Tribunal of Appeal in Appendix III. Part II., post. Conditions.-Power is also given to the Council by sect. 190, post, of imposing conditions upon giving its consent to the doing or omission of any act or thing with regard to which its consent is required by the Act. The non-observance or failure to fulfil any such condition will subject the owner or occupier in default to a penalty not exceeding ten pounds, see sect. 200 (10). Rights of owners of adjoining lands.-Who is the owner of land within the meaning of the Act is defined by sect. 5 (29), ante, p. 25, and the term land by sect. 3 of the Interpretation Act, 1889 (52 & 53 Vict. c. 63) is to include 'messuages, tenements, and hereditaments, houses and buildings of any tenure.' The Council cannot by giving its consent to any act under the section confer upon the person to whom the consent is given the right to carry out such act so as to cause an injury to the owner of any adjoining lands, which would give such owner a right of action in respect of such act if carried out. For instance, if the owner of the adjoining land possessed an easement of light or way over the space or land upon which the Council is asked to allow a building or structure to be erected, the fact that the Council may give its consent to such erection will not justify the erection, if it will deprive the adjoining owner of the access of light to his buildings, or of the means of access to his land as the case may be. The right to a view merely over the land proposed to be built upon is not, however, a right which the Courts will protect, see Foli v. the Devonshire Club, 83 L. T. 147; but the Court will prevent the building upon land so as to render access to water pipes, by means of which the owner of the adjoining lands is entitled to receive a supply of water for his premises, more inconvenient and costly, see Goodhart v. Hyett, 25 Ch. D. 182; 50 L. T. (N.S.) 95. Where a question arises as to whether or not the rights of an adjoining owner have been or are being infringed, although the Court will not, pending the trial of an action to try the question, order the demolition of any of the buildings alleged to be an infringement, which have been erected before proceedings were commenced, or notice given of the intention to commence proceedings to restrain the building, it will order the demolition of any portion of a building which has been hurried up after notice that an injunction was about to be F 57 & 58 Vict. applied for. See the Court of Appeal in Daniel v. Ferguson, (1891), 2 Ch. 27; 39 W. R. 599; 90 L. T. 337 c. ccxiii. s. 13. Alteration of existing buildings.-Sect. 6 of the Metropolitan Building Amendment Act, 1878, the provisions of which corresponded to the provisions of sect. 13, contained provisoes whereby its provisions were prevented from applying to the construction or extension of any buildings within the limits of any area lawfully occupied by any house or building within two years before the passing of that Act; and to the construction or extension of any house or buildings in or abutting upon any street existing, formed, or laid out for building at the time of the passing of the Act, with regard to which it was held that the finding of a magistrate that an old highway which existed before the passing of the Act was not an existing street within the meaning of the proviso was wrong in law, such highway being a street within the definition of that expression in the Act, see Ellis v. the London County Council, 67 L. T. (N.S.) 558; 57 J. P. 24. Subsect. 5 of the present section considerably limits the extent to which such proviso rendered it possible to erect or extend buildings within the prescribed distance of the centre of the roadway. In the first place, it will be seen that the section makes the right to build within such distance dependent not upon the existence of the street prior to the passing of the Act, but upon the existence of a building or structure, or of a portion of a building or structure, within the prescribed distance, either at the commencement of the Act (i.e. on the 1st January, 1895), or at some time within seven years previously to that date; and in the second place, the present section limits the right to the alteration or re-erection of a building or structure so as only to occupy land within the prescribed distance which was occupied by the building or structure which existed previously. Further, as to additions to and alterations of buildings, see sect. 209, post. Under sect. 147, post, every notice served in pursuance of the Act, as to which see inter alia sect. 145, is to be deemed to be primâ facie evidence as against the builder of the nature of the building, structure, or work proposed to be built or done. The Act does not define what is meant by a building or structure, but in the case of a dwelling-house the law considers whatever is within the curtilage of the building as part of such building; and where under sect. 75 of the Metropolis Management Amendment Act, 1862, an order of a magistrate was obtained requiring the demolition of so much of a building erected upon the site of an old dwelling-house and a yard at the back of such house as had been erected in advance of the general line of buildings in the street upon which the side of such house and the yard abutted, the Court of Appeal restrained the carrying out of such order in respect not only of the portion of the building erected upon the site of the dwelling-house, but also in respect of the portion built upon the yard, holding that no distinction could be made between the |