BOTH sides of the tribunal case challenging Cr Kevin Duffy’s entitlement to be on Orange City Council are paying their own legal costs, but the council will have to cover the costs for a by-election if he is dismissed from office.
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Orange Ratepayers Association member John Da Rin took up the legal challenge against Cr Duffy in January when he and other members of the group alleged the former-Cabonne councillor still lived in Borenore - not at his son’s home at 1 Duncanson Drive making him ineligible to nominate for Orange council.
The group’s then-public officer Lindsay Johnston represented Mr Da Rin at the four initial outings before the Administrative Decisions Tribunal (ADT).
But now Mr Da Rin has engaged barrister Duncan Brakell to take up the case.
Mr Da Rin said members of the group had donated money to fund the legal challenge but he had contributed the most.
“It was too much work for Lindsay,” he said.
“It’s important to bring in some assistance.”
The case will continue before the tribunal in late August but a verdict is not expected until early September.
“I think blind freddy would be pretty confident,” Mr Da Rin said.
Cr Duffy said he was paying for his legal representative Grant Butterfield.
He declined to comment on the proceedings as he did not want to preempt the tribunal’s decision.
Mr Johnstone said he had resigned as the group’s public officer since the May tribunal hearing but the relationship with the association was amicable and he was still assisting the legal challenge.
