Canberra Building Regulations (ACT)

In the matter of the Canberra Building Regulations, the parties involved were the government of the Australian Capital Territory and a building contractor, who challenged certain provisions of the Regulations. The dispute centred on the amendments to the Regulations which were made under the Building Ordinance 1964, and which sought to clarify the definition of terms, alter licensing requirements for building contractors, and change the fee structure for building permits.

The key legal issues before the court were whether the amendments to the Regulations were valid and whether they complied with the parent Act, the Building Ordinance 1964. The contractor argued that the amendments were beyond the power of the government to make and that they did not conform to the requirements of the Ordinance. The government, on the other hand, contended that the amendments were valid and within their legislative power.

The court found that the amendments to the Regulations were valid and did not exceed the power of the government to make them. The court held that the changes were reasonably necessary to bring the Regulations up to date and to clarify certain provisions. The court also held that the amendments did conform to the requirements of the Building Ordinance 1964 and were therefore valid. As a result, the contractor's challenge to the amendments was dismissed.

There were no final orders made in this case as the court found in favour of the government and dismissed the contractor's challenge. However, the amendments to the Canberra Building Regulations that were made under the Building Ordinance 1964 remain in effect.