Before signing or issuing a NSW home building contract, a builder should check eight areas: the contracting parties and mandatory documents, the scope of works and contract documents, the contract price and allowances, insurance and progress payments, the variation procedure, the construction period and extensions of time, site conditions and owner obligations, and the suspension, termination and...Read More

Your builder tells you that the contract price has increased.  Perhaps the cost of materials has increased. Unexpected rock shelves have been discovered during excavation. A product shown in the plans is no longer available. Or the builder says that work you assumed was included is actually a variation.  For homeowners, this raises an immediate question:  If I signed a fixed-price home...Read More

Quantum Meruit Where There Is No Construction Contract In construction relationships where an agreement is not formally executed and there is only verbal, sometimes implied by conduct, and other times without any formal contract at all, there can be problems in recovering payment for works or services provided. Typically this occurs when one party makes a promise, the other party acts on it and the promisor later backs out.  Without...Read More

The Security of Payment Act 1999 (NSW) also known as SOPA provides a fast, enforceable legal process for resolving payment issues in the building and construction industry. It allows contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers to claim progress payments and recover unpaid amounts without going to court. While commonly associated with commercial projects, Payment Act now applies...Read More

Understanding Home Building Contracts When building or renovating in New South Wales, your home building contracts are the foundation of your legal protection. These documents do more than just list prices; they dictate what work is done, how variations are handled, and what happens if a dispute reaches a tribunal. In this article, we explain...Read More

What Property Buyers and Developers Need to Know When purchasing off-the-plan property in NSW, one of the most important legal terms to understand is the sunset clause. These clauses set a deadline by which a property development must be completed. If that deadline is not met, the contract may be terminated by either the buyer...Read More

When planning to build or renovate your own home in New South Wales, you may be considering acting as an owner builder. While this can offer flexibility and potential cost savings, it also comes with serious legal responsibilities under the Home Building Act 1989 (NSW) (HBA). In this article, we break down what it means to be an owner builder...Read More

When building or renovating a home in New South Wales, both homeowners and builders must understand their rights and obligations under the Home Building Act 1989 (NSW). One of the most important protections offered by the Act is statutory warranties. These are mandatory warranties that apply to all residential building contracts.
 Our Home Building Act lawyers...Read More

What Is a Payment Claim Under the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999 (NSW)? If you work in building and construction and have not been paid for completed work or supplied goods, a payment claim under the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999 (NSW) (SOPA) may help you enforce...Read More