Mark Cottom acted for two clients who were being investigated by a council for unauthorised works on a rural-residential property. Mark attended two recorded interviews where the clients were required to answer questions asked by council officers, and made representations as to the lawfulness of the second interview and the triviality of the offences. This was particularly so because the clients did not know at the time that what they were doing was wrong, and since being told otherwise by the council had rectified the works as soon as they could. After completing its investigations, the council gave each client a penalty notice for the unauthorised works instead of prosecuting them in the Local Court or Land and Environment Court as had been previously threatened - a much cheaper and less stressful resolution of the matter for the clients.