Landowners win against council in rating categorisation dispute
In a major win for the owners of two Bunnings warehouses in Ipswich, the Court of Appeal has held that the Ipswich City Council wrongly categorised their properties for rating purposes. The decision highlights the financial impact, as well as the difficulties, that can arise in applying differential rating categories to land. The long running […]
ReadmoreCOVID-19 | Residential Tenants affected by COVID-19 and Impact on Sale Contracts (QLD)
Controversial new laws giving temporary relief to Queensland residential tenants affected by the COVID-19 emergency came into effect on 24 April 2020[1]. The new laws override a number of provisions in the residential tenancies legislation[2] until 31 December 2020. The new laws attempt to strike a fair balance between: the public health need of avoiding […]
ReadmoreDevelopment Agreements, the devil may be in the detail
The New South Wales Supreme Court decision of Crown Sydney Property v Barangaroo Delivery Authority; Lendlease (Millers Point) v Barangaroo Delivery Authority[1] highlights the need for government entities entering commercial agreements, such as development agreements, to judiciously choose the language used and to carefully comply with the terms, or face the potentially costly implications of failing […]
ReadmorePersonal Property Securities Act – register or regret
State and local governments have large asset portfolios and enter hundreds – if not thousands – of property dealings every year. The Personal Property Securities Act 2009 Cth (the Act) has critical implications for common property transactions. Government property owners: need to be alert to the real risk of losing title to goods if appropriate […]
ReadmoreUnfair contract terms
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced that it is taking waste management company JJ Richards to court over alleged breaches of the unfair contracts regime under the Australian Consumer Law [1] (ACL). The unfair contracts terms provisions of the ACL were extended to apply to standard form contracts involving small businesses from […]
ReadmoreCommercial Building Disclosure – threshold halves from 1 July 2017 – Are you ready?
From 1 July 2017, the threshold for the compulsory Commercial Building Disclosure (CBD) of an office building’s energy efficiency will reduce from 2,000m2 to 1,000m2. The legislation, which commenced in 2010, requires most owners of office buildings to have a current building energy efficiency certificate (BEEC) before offering to sell or lease their property. The […]
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