The idea in brief The recent Opal and Mascot Towers apartment building failures reveal a messy set of inconsistent laws, nationally, that discriminate between homeowners and apartment owners, undermining confidence in the residential apartment sector. In most States and Territories in Australia, homeowners are protected by statutory warranties that when complete, each new home will be free from defects for a warranty period. Most States and Territories also legislate for the requirement …
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Joint taskforce inquiry into fraud in the Queensland building industry: submissions closing
The idea in brief The Queensland Government special joint taskforce into fraudulent behaviour in the construction industry was formed on 28 February 2019 and called for confidential submissions from the public of instances of fraud and non-payment in the industry. The special joint taskforce is headed by a former Supreme Court judge and includes detectives from the Queensland Police, investigators from the Queensland Building and Construction Commission and prosecutors from the …
Federal Government Senate Committee inquiry into mine closure projects fails to reach consensus
The idea in brief: Mine rehabilitation is a key aspect of the resource project life cycle. The failure of inadequate rehabilitation can lead to significant environmental issues – and substantial costs for industry stakeholders, and in their failure or absence, the Australian taxpayer. In February 2017, the Australian Senate referred the Environment and Communications References Committee to inquire and report on the “rehabilitation of mining and resources projects as …
Relatively unknown Queensland law sees builders and developers exposed to strict liability
Under the common law in Australia, a landowner has the right to not have the physical support of that land removed by another person. In Queensland, s179 of the Property Law Act 1974 (Qld) extends this concept further, making it unlawful for any person to do anything on or below land which withdraws support from either: another person’s land; or any building, structure or erection that has been placed on or below another person’s land. This means if, in the process of …
How three words cost a mining company $55m and how you can avoid the same mistake
The idea in short: Yesterday the Court of Appeal in Queensland found oil and gas provider Santos’ call on a bank guarantee that its EPC Contractor, Fluor Australia Pty Ltd provided under its EPC Contract for Santos' GLNG Project, was invalid because Santos' letter of demand did not include the words “Authorised signatory of Santos Limited” underneath the signatory of the letter. The bank guarantee required the demand to be issued in the form of a pro forma annexed to the bank …