Owners Corporation Strata Plan 64757 v MJA Group Pty Ltd

The Owners Corporation Strata Plan 64757 (the Owners Corporation) appealed to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against a decision concerning statutory warranties implied into a contract for residential building work. The dispute centred on the interpretation of provisions within the *Home Building Act 1989* (NSW), specifically sections 18C and 18E, and their application to defects in a strata development. MJA Group Pty Ltd was the developer and respondent in the appeal.

The primary legal issues before the Court of Appeal were: (1) the nature and terms of the notional contract imposed by section 18C of the *Home Building Act 1989* between a developer and a successor in title; (2) whether section 18C created a single cause of action or multiple causes of action; (3) the meaning of "completion of the work" as used in section 18E of the Act; and (4) whether a claim under section 18C constituted an action for damages arising from a failure to take reasonable care, as contemplated by section 34 of the *Civil Liability Act 2002* (NSW).

The Court of Appeal affirmed the primary judge's findings, holding that section 18C of the *Home Building Act 1989* imposes a statutory warranty that the work will be done with due care and skill and will be fit for the purpose for which it is intended. The Court reasoned that this statutory warranty forms part of the notional contract between the developer and the successor in title. It was also determined that the question of when "completion of the work" occurred, for the purposes of section 18E, was a question of fact that had been correctly determined by the primary judge. Furthermore, the Court confirmed that a claim under section 18C is not an action for damages for failure to take reasonable care within the meaning of section 34 of the *Civil Liability Act 2002*.

The appeal was dismissed, and the Owners Corporation was ordered to pay the costs of MJA Group Pty Ltd.