Lovegrove & Cotton
Construction Law & Planning Law Weekly Bulletin
Monday 22 September 2014
Eight Steps to a Best Practice Australian Building Act (Australian Readership) By Conjoint Professor Kim Lovegrove FAIB
This Sourceable article identifies some of the key elements that make for a best practice building Act. The readers are encouraged to comment on the reform ideas in the Sourceable commentary slot which is on the top left hand side of the article. In the early 90’s the predecessor of the Australian Building Codes Board, the AUBRCC initiated a project called the National Model Building Act which became a template for modern day building control in Australia. Maybe it is time to look at such an initiative again.
A Draft Ebola Healthcare Facility Standard
Ebola has been identified as an international healthcare emergency. The disease is deadly, very contagious and is growing at an exponential rate in West Africa. Sierra Leone currently has a national lockdown where for three days people are not allowed to leave their homes. One of our partners, along with Bruce Rogers, a highly regarded New Zealand Building Controller and President of the Northern Chapter of the New Zealand Institute of Building, have started to prepare a draft standard that could potentially provide guidelines for the construction of Ebola healthcare facilities in West Africa. The standard is a draft standard for discussion and we are inviting comment on this standard to improve it as the document is embryonic and fledging. If anybody has any ideas on point, then please contact the Centre for Best Practice Building Control, Kim Lovegrove or Bruce Rogers via their Linkedin addresses.
How to Respond to a Building Order (Victorian Readership) By Peter Micevski – Solicitor, Lovegrove Smith & Cotton
In Victoria, both municipal building surveyors and private building surveyors have the power to issue building notices and building orders pursuant to the Building Act 1993 and the Building Regulations 2006 on building owners. These building notices or building orders can be issued by building surveyors for works under construction, or even on existing buildings where no work is occurring. Peter Micevski has written a short guide on strategy for owners who have just been served with a building notice or building order.
Nine Ways To Fix Building Regulation In Victoria (Victorian Readership) By Justin Cotton, Partner, Construction and Practitioner Advocacy, Lovegrove Smith & Cotton, Construction and Commercial Lawyers
Justin Cotton is one of the leading construction practitioner advocates in Australia and has appeared in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and the ACT in practitioner misconduct and tribunal matters for well over 10 years. With this cross jurisdictional perspective his thoughts are useful in terms of what he identifies as some of the problems with the Building Act in Victoria and more importantly his ideas on how the legislation could be improved.
Compulsory Contracts of Engagement for Council Certifiers: What are the Ramifications? (NSW Readership) By Justin Cotton, Partner, Construction and Practitioner Advocacy, Lovegrove Smith & Cotton, Construction and Commercial Lawyers
Controversy has arisen for building certification in New South Wales, with the advent of compulsory contracts of engagement for Council accredited certifiers. Justin Cotton, partner and head of practitioner advocacy examines the pros and cons and discusses a few of the preliminary concerns.
Tendering for Victorian Government Building and Construction Work (Victorian Readership) By Peter Micevski – Solicitor, Lovegrove Smith & Cotton
Construction firms seeking to tender for Victorian State projects need to consider how the Victorian Code of Practice for the Building and Construction Industry (“the Code”) and accompanying Guidelines affect their policies and practices. This article by Peter Micevski summarises the application of the Code and Guidelines and the key implications for Victorian construction industry participants.
Lovegrove Smith & Cotton’s E-Library is a free online resource of articles, which puts a wealth of information at your fingertips. The articles in the E- Library have been written by lawyers and a number of them have been published in the Australian, The Age and the Herald Sun. Some of the articles date back to the 1990’s.
