Background
The plaintiff owned Victoria Park, a racing track which charged admissions to people who placed bets on the races. The racecourse was surrounded by a very high fence. Taylor, who had a house and front yard adjacent to the course, allowed the radio broadcasting station 2UW to construct a five-metre high platform on scaffolding from which someone could see into the course and broadcast – with the help of binoculars — the races and information about horses posted at the ground, which facilitated unregulated off-track betting. Attendance at the ground plummeted.
The Plaintiff claimed that on-track betting was lower as a result of the broadcasts, as people who had previously come to the track were now listening on the radio instead and Taylor was profiting at the expense of the plaintiff.
He applied to the Supreme Court of New South Wales for an injunction against Taylor on the footing of nuisance and breach of copyright. Privacy and non-natural use of property were also cited as grounds. It was common ground that the mere construction and use of the raised platform constituted no breach of building or zoning regulations or of the betting and gaming legislation or indeed of the regulations governing broadcasting.
The injunction was denied, and the decision was appealed to the High Court.
Read more about this topic: Victoria Park Racing And Recreation Grounds Co. Ltd V. Taylor
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