Dunmoor Pty Ltd v Queensland Building and Construction Commission & Anor

Dunmoor Pty Ltd appealed against the decision of the Queensland Building and Construction Commission, which involved two proceedings: a building dispute and a general administrative review. The Commission had directed Dunmoor to rectify certain defects in a building project. Dunmoor challenged the Commission's determination, arguing that it had been incorrectly made and was procedurally unfair. The Commission responded that the appeal was without merit. The court had to decide whether the Commission erred in determining that the contract was a cost-plus contract under the Domestic Building Contracts Act, whether the Commission breached procedural fairness, and whether the Commission erred in considering that fraud was alleged and in dealing with conflicting evidence.

The court found that the Commission had made errors in its determination. Firstly, the court held that the Commission erred in its construction of section 55(1)(b) of the Act, which pertains to cost-plus contracts. The court found that the Commission had incorrectly interpreted the scope of section 55(1)(b) and had applied it to the wrong type of contract. Secondly, the court found that the Commission had breached procedural fairness by failing to give Dunmoor an adequate opportunity to respond to the allegation of fraud. The court held that the Commission's consideration of the allegation of fraud was not justified and had prejudiced Dunmoor's case. Finally, the court found that the Commission had erred in dealing with conflicting evidence by giving undue weight to certain evidence and disregarding other evidence without proper justification.

The appeal was allowed, and the Tribunal's orders were set aside. The court directed that the building dispute proceeding be determined before the review proceeding, and that the Tribunal make further directions for the filing of evidence and listing of the proceedings for further hearing. The court also directed that another proceeding, APL084-15, travel with the two main proceedings until they were concluded.