ABSTRACT
The traditional rule of law relating to local government is that estoppel cannot operate to hinder or prevent a local authority from performing its statutory duty. The doctrine of estoppel was developed towards the end of the 19th century and, in a leading case, Hughes v Metropolitan Railway Co (1877) 2 App Cas 439, Lord Cairns set out the principle of estoppel as follows:
It is important to understand that the principle of estoppel arises from rights under a contract. This highlights the distinction between public and private law, and the principle of estoppel remains essentially a private law remedy.
