Balzan council to appeal

I refer to the report Driver Wins €180 For Pothole Damage (September 19). I would like to explain why representatives of the Balzan local council were not present in court to give evidence on the case.

The case had been adjourned from 2011 to May 30, 2012 because the plaintiffs, the Bianchi couple, did not turn up to present their evidence when during this sitting the plaintiffs asked the tribunal to amend the name of the defendant from Kunsill Lokali Ħal Balzan to Sindku and Segretarju to which the tribunal agreed. At this point, the tribunal made a note that Balzan council did not oppose the request and there agreed to it.

The tribunal should have ordered that the mayor and secretary be notified of this change but, instead, proceedings were adjourned to July 2 to allow the local council to present its evidence. The mayor and secretary did not know about this new change and the new date, so nobody from Balzan council turned up and the case was decided on September 17.

Balzan council will be appealing as the mayor and secretary were not notified and the case was decided against them in their absence.

That is why “during the proceedings no one from the council turned up to present any evidence”.