Publications

The risk of an adverse costs order is slight and should not deter landowners from pursuing just compensation. That proposition is illustrated by a recent case, Inglis v State of Queensland (No 3) [2016] QLC 28 The State Government took some land in order to develop a correctional facility.  The valuation evidence was that the …

The Producer Price Index which was released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics indicates that the cost of materials used for residential construction has continued to increase. The strong demand for timber, plaster and glass has reflected the recent surge in home building across Australia. Over the March 2015 quarter, the cost of these home …

Strata living arrangements are becoming an essential part of the way we own property, and, as a result, the NSW Government’s release of two draft bills to modernise the State’s strata laws has been welcomed across the board. NSW is entering into a new development boom creating a need for strata scheme owners and managers …

Do you use sub-contractors or sub-consultants to perform some part of the work or services you are undertaking as part of a building and construction project in NSW? If your answer is ‘YES’ then: you are a ‘head contractor’ as far as the Security of Payment (SoP) Act is concerned; and you MUST provide a …

The amendments to the Home Building Act (HBA) were introduced on 15 January 2015. The most significant amendment is the introduction to the ‘Major Defect’ test which replaced the ‘Structural Defect’ test. To satisfy the ‘Major Defect’, the defect must be in a major element of the building.  This includes load-bearing components, fire safety systems …