Fernandes Constructions v Tahmoor Coal (t/as Centennial Coal)

The matter before the court involved a dispute between Fernandes Constructions and Tahmoor Coal (trading as Centennial Coal) over a payment claim submitted under the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999. Fernandes Constructions, a sub-contractor, had submitted a payment claim for monies owed under a contract for construction work. The primary issue before the court was whether the tax invoice provided by Fernandes Constructions complied with the statutory requirements outlined in section 13(2)(c) of the Act. Specifically, the court needed to determine whether the tax invoice sufficiently indicated that it was prepared under the Act, as required by the legislation.

The court examined the language of the tax invoice provided by Fernandes Constructions. The invoice stated that it "is prepared under" the Security of Payment Act, which the court interpreted as an attempt to comply with the statutory requirement. However, the court noted that the phrase "is prepared under" did not explicitly state that the invoice was "prepared in accordance with" the Act, which is the precise language required by section 13(2)(c). The court held that the minor difference in wording was significant and that the invoice did not strictly comply with the statutory requirement. As a result, the payment claim was not valid under the Act.

Having found that the payment claim did not comply with the statutory requirements, the court dismissed the claim. The court concluded that, because the tax invoice did not strictly adhere to the mandatory language specified in the Act, Fernandes Constructions' claim for payment was invalid. Consequently, the court ordered that Fernandes Constructions' claim be dismissed with costs.