For a family as well as a business organization, a gorgeous building turns out to be a dream project. The new look of a brand-new building with fine exteriors and interiors can be a real morale boost. But without a proper plan and management, such a dream project can turn into a nightmare overnight. Disagreement between clients and builders is a common thing to arise and sometimes, that only gives rise to more and more problems, much to everyone’s disappointment.
Residential disputes bring financial hardships to a family while commercial disputes bring extensive loss to a building farm. At such a situation, it is better to contact a law firm that can provide you with building and constructional lawyers or building dispute lawyers who can show you the proper way to handle it.
According to the detailed study of a well-known law firm, there are many common reasons found, responsible for rise of disputes in a construction purpose.
For any project to commence, the first and foremost requirement is a contract written with appropriate legislation. It is also the key thing to protect both the sides. For two types of constructional contracts, residential and commercial, there are two distinct areas of law.
Residential contracts are governed by QBCC act of 1991. QBCC stands for Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act, which lays out the minimum requirements for contracts. If you are a homeowner, under this act, you must engage licensed builders in order to have better quality and professionalism. It also requires builders to have necessary insurances and statutory warranties.
Under QBCC, when a complaint is lodged regarding a building dispute, a building inspector is assigned for a necessary mediation. He will thoroughly review the documents and make discussions with both the parties. If required, a site investigation can also be arranged in order to make the liability like rectifying of work.
When the liable builder fails, the commission may go for taking necessary disciplinary action with magistrate court or seeking a solution of repaying through home warranty scheme. Most of the cases that are lodged are solved within two months, and at commission level.
In case of commercial building construction contracts, similar disputes may arise but these contracts are governed by BIF act of 2017, or Building Industry Fairness Act. This act is a time-saving and cost-effective act that ensures payments processed properly within time, even if there is dispute or delay due to court proceedings. According to BIF guidelines, the submission of legal documents has to be made within 10 working days.
A fast-track adjudication process is carried out when despite the fact that, payment claim and schedules are appropriately filed, the parties do not agree with each other. For this fast process, the documents have to be properly and completely submitted within very short time. And what more, you cannot make revisions or corrections once it was taken into adjudication. This faster process is done to make decisions as quick as enough so that neither party can give any input or exchange.
The last resort for resolving a constructional dispute is going to court. BIF-adjudicated decisions can be challenged in a court even after construction work starts. But, the process is time-consuming and costly.
You must always be aware of civil laws before you proceed with a construction project. In case of a dispute, it is better to contact civil lawyers to get appropriate legal information and representation. Civil Lawyers Perth and other organizations can help in finding them.