Greer & Anor v Mt Cotton Constructions Pty Ltd

QUEENSLAND CIVIL AND ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL

CITATION:

Greer & Anor v Mt Cotton Constructions Pty Ltd [2018] QCATA 196

PARTIES:

DAMIEN GREER

(first appellant)

KATE GREER

(second appellant)

v

MT COTTON CONSTRUCTIONS PTY LTD

(respondent)

APPLICATION NO:

APL044-17

ORIGINATING APPLICATION NO:

BDL190-14

MATTER TYPE:

Appeals

DELIVERED ON:

21 November 2018

HEARING DATE:

22 August 2017

HEARD AT:

Brisbane

DECISION OF:

Senior Member Brown

Member Burke

ORDERS:

1.   Appeal allowed.

2.   The decision dated 17 January 2017 in BDL190-14 is set aside.

3.   The matter is returned to the Tribunal for rehearing according to law and in accordance with these reasons.

4.   The parties must file and exchange any submissions on the costs of the appeal within fourteen (14) days and any submissions in reply within seven (7) days thereafter.

CATCHWORDS:

APPEAL AND NEW TRIAL – APPEAL – GENERAL PRINCIPLES – RIGHT OF APPEAL – WHEN APPEAL LIES – ERROR OF LAW – WHAT IS – GENERALLY –

where question of law – whether tribunal erred in assessing owners entitlement to damages on the basis of the value of variations not complying with Part 7 of the Domestic Building Contracts Act 2000 (Qld)

STATUTES – ACTS OF PARLIAMENT – INTERPRETATION – GENERAL APPROACHES TO INTERPRETATION

CONTRACTS – BUILDING, ENGINEERING AND RELATED  CONTRACTS    –    PERFORMANCE    OF

WORK – GENERAL – Domestic Building Contracts Act 2000 (Qld) – where contractual variations – where variations did not comply with Part 7 of the Domestic Building Contracts Act 2000 (Qld) – where no application to QCAT for approval to recover amounts for non- compliant variations – where tribunal at first instance found assessment of owners’ entitlement to damages required non-compliant variation works to be valued – whether tribunal erred in assessing owners’ entitlement to damages – purpose of Domestic Building Contracts Act 2000 (Qld) – purpose of Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991 (Qld) – whether s 84 of the Domestic Building Contracts Act 2000 (Qld) abrogates entitlement of a builder to retain monies paid by an owner for non-compliant variations

Acts Interpretation Act 1954 (Qld), s 14A

Domestic Building Contracts Act 2000 (Qld) (repealed), s 3, s 6, s 6(2), s 6(5), s 7, s 7(1), s 16, s 16(1), s 64, s 65, s

66, s67, s 69, s 72(2)(b), s 79, s 80, s 81, s 82, s 83, s
83(1)(b), s 84, s 84(2), s 84(2)(a), s 84(3), s 84(3)(a)(i), s
84(4), s 84(4)(a)(i), s 84(4)(a)(ii), s 84(6), s 84(7), s 92, s
93(1)
Queensland Building Construction and Commission Act
1991 (Qld), s 3, s 42, s 42(1), s 42(3), s 42(4), s 77, s 77(2),
s 77(3)(d), Schedule 1, s 62

Queensland Building Services Authority Act 1991, s 42, s 42(3)

Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2009, s 115, s 115(1), s 116, s 116(2), s 142, s 142(1), s 142(3)(b),

s 147(1), s 147(2), s 147(3)

Allaro Homes Cairns Pty Ltd v O’Reilly & Anor [2012] QCA 286

Bellgrove v Eldridge (1954) 90 CLR 613
Cachia v…