A South Australian woman has won a protracted four-year legal battle against her local council after being fined $104 for allegedly double parking outside a private school in Adelaide’s north.
Identified in court documents as Ms Mathie, news.com.au reports that the driver was accused of double parking her silver Hyundai on Boucaut Avenue in Blakeview in 2021. She argued, however, that she was not parked but stuck in a stationary line of traffic.
Her explanation was initially rejected by Elizabeth Magistrates Court, where the magistrate noted photographs showing her car in the same spot two minutes apart — an “exceedingly long time for a car to be stuck in traffic”.
Undeterred, Ms Mathie appealed to the Supreme Court and succeeded. The matter was sent back for retrial, but the City of Playford ultimately withdrew the charge.
Last month, the Court of Appeal ordered the council to pay 20 per cent of her $52,896 legal costs — a sum of $10,580.
Her lawyer, Karen Stanley, told ABC Radio Adelaide that the Supreme Court upheld the appeal due to both a strong original defence and a successful technical argument.
“Ultimately, the Court of Appeal overturned the technical issue, but most importantly, it found that Ms Mathie had a really good defence,” Ms Stanley said.
“She would have been breaking other road rules by driving onto the wrong side of the road to get out of the traffic line — and the court agreed.”
In a statement, Playford Council said the case centred on “a fundamental point of law” with implications for South Australia’s entire expiation system, stressing its responsibility to “preserve the integrity of the expiation process” relied upon by councils and SA Police.
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