In Capello v Hammond & Simonds NSW Pty Ltd [2020] NSWSC 1021 His Honour Justice Ball considered the entitlement of a homeowner to general delay damages in circumstances where the contract stipulated liquidated damages of $1 a day. In this case, Ball J held that the clause in dispute, within an industry-standard contract, was void. […]
In TFM Epping Land Pty Ltd v Decon Australia Pty Ltd [2020] NSWCA 93 the Court of Appeal has confirmed that a non-compliant supporting statement by a head contractor will not invalidate a payment claim or render ineffective service of a payment claim under the Building and Construction Security of Payment Act 1999 (SoPA). This 14 May […]
The Appeal Panel’s decision in Ashton v Stevenson (discussed in issue 7, August 2019) has been subject to appeal. At first instance, the Senior Member classified defects to the external balcony and cladding as major defects. The Appeal Panel disagreed and held that those defects were ’minor’. One effect of this decision was that those […]
Defective building work and the Home Building Act 1989 (HBA). In Hutchings v Hope [2019] NSWCATAP 59, the Appeal Panel clarified whether the two-year limitation period found in section 18E of the Home Building Act 1989 (HBA) altered the six-year limitation period for breach of contract found in section 14 (1) of the Limitation Act […]
Appeal Panel rules on controversy over statutory warranty limitation periods In Gregorio v Cheale [2018] NSWCATAP 118 the Appeal Panel revisited the issue of whether a seven year limitation period applied to statutory warranty claims where the contract was made before 1 February 2012 and confirmed that it does. The appeal concerned a defective works […]
THE PREFERRED OUTCOME PRINCIPLE Section 49MA Home Building Act 1989 Section 48MA of the Home Building Act 1989 says that rectification of defective residential work by the original builder is the ‘preferred outcome’ of the proceedings. In Clements v Murphy [2018] NSWCATAP 152 NCAT’s Appeal Panel considered whether this principle extended to incomplete work as […]
HOME DETENTION FOR BUILDER Another contractor is cooling his heels after being found guilty of failing to obtain the mandatory cover under the Home Compensation Fund Insurance Scheme. Not only did the contractor fail to obtain the insurance in breach of the Home Building Act 1989 but he went further and represented to the homeowners […]
GREEN LIGHT TO SHORT TERM LETS In June 2018, after almost three years of consultation, the NSW Government released its proposals for the regulation of the short term letting industry, an industry that delivers an estimated $31 billion per year to the economy but significant distress and disruption to strata residents by so called […]
HSC check – is your building contractor insured? Whether your builder or contractor takes out a Home Building Compensation policy can be critical. Therefore Fair Trading’s recent launch of a brand new online search facility called “HBC Check” is very welcome to home-owners and industry participants alike. This tool supplements the existing suite of consumer […]
Changes to the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015. Reforms to the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 are an attempt to protect buyers of new strata lots from defective building works by facilitating the early identification and rectification of defects, thus leading to an improvement in the standard of construction of NSW residential strata. Will reform fix […]
