30 June 2020
By Helen Amanatiadis
New ‘duty of care’ laws now make all participants in building work responsible for fixing building defects.
Passed by the NSW Parliament in early June 2020, the new building laws will have a significant impact on people that own and live in strata buildings and on any person involved in property development and construction in NSW.
The new laws apply to both existing buildings built in the last ten years and also to the construction of new buildings going forward.
These laws will give many owners corporations rights they did not previously have.
Below we explain the building defects new ‘duty of care’ laws and which actions strata managers can now take.
The key features of the new legislation include:
The new laws also introduce a system for regulating design and building work, including registration of designers, engineers, builders and other specialist practitioners. Developers, builders and certifiers will be rated on their record of building failures, finances, complaints and insurance claims which is intended to ensure that only quality practitioners can be engaged in construction work.
Strata Managers should:
The new legislation was enacted following the recommendations in the Shergold Weir Report and due to defects in a number of strata buildings in NSW. These new laws support the NSW Government’s six-pillar Building Reform package and apply to both existing buildings built in the last ten years and to the construction of new buildings going forward. The new laws will go a long way to ensure buildings, including commercial buildings, in NSW are constructed to keep the occupants safe, and in turn attempt to rebuild and restore public confidence in the NSW construction industry.
Thank you to JS Mueller & Co Lawyers for the use of their article.
Useful links:
NSW Government’s six-pillar Building Reform package
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