By Mark Skermer, Principal
Many Victorians will now be aware that the State Government has taken action to shut down the building industry for a period of 2 weeks commencing at 11:59am yesterday.
The Government has mandated that all construction projects in metropolitan Melbourne, City of Ballarat, City of Greater Geelong, Surf Coast Shire and Mitchell Shire will be closed. Limited exceptions have been provided for to permit workers to attend sites to respond to an emergency or perform urgent and essential work to protect health and safety. The Government has also announced that an amnesty will be put in place so that a limited number of workers can attend construction sites so they may be safely closed.
This announcement will now put a series of both builders and landowners in limbo regarding their build.
If you are a builder, you may be wondering what effect the closure has on your ability to claim progress payments and/or achieve practical completion.
If you are a landowner and you are getting a home built, this announcement may have you asking what effect this will have on your build programme, practical completion and perhaps a defects liability period.
The starting point given the closure is for all parties to approach any discussions with a common sense approach that is designed to achieve real outcomes. That will in all likelihood lead to outcomes which all parties can accept.
MST has and continues to provide advice in relation to disputes within the construction industry space. If you require assistance, please phone Mark Skermer on 8540 0262 to discuss.
