Khan v Filardo Ercan Archtects Pty Ltd (Civil Dispute)

The applicant, Khan, engaged the respondent, Filardo Ercan Architects Pty Ltd, to design a house. A dispute arose concerning the quality of the design and the timeliness of the services provided. The matter was heard by the Civil and Administrative Tribunal of New South Wales. Khan alleged that Filardo Ercan Architects breached the guarantee of due care and skill, the guarantee of reasonable timeliness, and an implied term of the contract. Khan further argued that the brief provided by him was apt to serve as an implied contractual term and that he was not obliged to pay the invoice issued before the contract was terminated.

The court examined whether the respondent had breached the guarantees under Australian consumer law and the implied term of the contract. It considered the adequacy of the brief provided by Khan and whether it was appropriate to imply a contractual term. The court also assessed whether Khan was required to pay the invoice issued before the contract was terminated.

The court found that Filardo Ercan Architects had breached the guarantee of due care and skill and the guarantee of reasonable timeliness. It determined that the brief provided by Khan was not apt to serve as an implied contractual term. The court held that Khan was obliged to pay the invoice issued before the contract was terminated. The Tribunal ordered Khan to pay the outstanding invoice and interest on that amount.

The Tribunal further ordered that Khan must pay the respondent $6,270 for the unpaid invoice dated 1 April 2022, along with interest on that amount calculated in accordance with the Court Procedures Rules 2006 from 8 April 2022 to 7 February 2023, within 28 days of the date of the decision.