A South Australian mother has emerged victorious from a gruelling four-year legal fight against her local council after successfully challenging a $104 parking ticket issued outside her child's school.
The Costly School Drop-Off
Known only as "Ms Mathie" in court documents, the Blakeview mother was fined in 2021 for allegedly double parking outside Blakes Crossing Christian school in Adelaide's north. The incident occurred during a busy school drop-off period. A Playford Council inspector photographed Mathie's vehicle twice within two minutes, showing it stopped in a line of traffic but positioned parallel to another car legally parked on the street.
Initially, Magistrate Edward Stratton-Smith upheld the fine, ruling that sufficient space existed for Mathie to drive around the traffic, even if this required crossing to the incorrect side of the road. Unsatisfied with this outcome, Mathie chose to appeal the decision.
A Legal Odyssey Through the Courts
The case took a significant turn when the Supreme Court set aside the conviction, finding the parking ticket was not clearly labelled and failed to adequately specify the nature of the offence. Undeterred, Playford Council then appealed this judgment to the Court of Appeal, South Australia's highest court.
In a complex ruling, the appellate court justices found that the ticket had been sufficiently labelled by containing the phrase "double parking," which they argued was common knowledge for road users. The court referenced current laws that define double parking as stopping any part of a vehicle between a parked car and the centre of the road.
However, the court also validated Mathie's appeal on a fundamental procedural ground: she was unrepresented during the initial trial and the burden of proof had not been properly explained to her. Crucially, the court also found it would have been dangerous for her to overtake the school traffic, with photos showing a child crossing in front of her vehicle at the time.
Facing a retrial, the council instead withdrew the charges entirely.
The Financial and Legal Aftermath
The personal cost to Mathie was staggering. She spent $46,716 fighting the original $107 fine, with total legal costs reaching $57,296. Although the Court of Appeal ordered Playford Council to pay $10,580 to Mathie last month, this amount barely made a dent in her overall legal expenses. The court noted that the costs ruling reflected that "neither party achieving total success."
Mathie's lawyer, Karen Stanley from Stanley Hill Elkins, offered sobering advice to other motorists considering fighting parking fines. "My advice is to pay the fine unless you have deep pockets," she told 7NEWS.com.au. "Legal representation for a parking fine is likely 50 times the cost of the fine. If you lose, council can seek costs of between $4,000 to $5,000."
Stanley explained that the offence of double parking is broader than many drivers realise. "Strictly speaking, if you are in a line of traffic at a red light and there is a parked car to the left of your car and the centre of the road on the other side, you are double parked," she clarified.
The lawyer highlighted the irony that the Council inspector who photographed Mathie's car was driving in the opposite direction, thereby proving it wasn't safe for her to overtake the vehicles in front. Stanley described representing Mathie as "one of the great honours of my career," praising her client's determination to "be the change."
A City of Playford spokesperson defended the council's actions, stating they pursued the case to "preserve the integrity of the expiation process, which is an essential regulatory function relied on by councils as well as the South Australia Police."
