Queensland Building and Construction Commission v Williams - [2015] QCAT 355

CITATION:	Queensland Building and Construction Commission v Williams [2015] QCAT 355
PARTIES:	Queensland Building and Construction Commission (Applicant)
v
Barry Kenneth Williams (Respondent)

APPLICATION NUMBER:

OCR428-12

MATTER TYPE:

Occupational regulation matters

HEARING DATE:

31 July 2015

HEARD AT:

Brisbane

DECISION OF:

Member Guthrie

DELIVERED ON:

24 August 2015

DELIVERED AT:

Brisbane

ORDERS MADE:

1. Proper grounds exist for taking disciplinary action against Barry Kenneth Williams pursuant to s 89(i) of the Queensland Building Services Authority Act 1991.

2. Barry Kenneth Williams’ builder’s licence number 1149329 is suspended indefinitely.

The Tribunal further directs that:

3. The Queensland Building and Construction Commission file in the Tribunal one (1) copy and give to Barry Kenneth Williams one (1) copy of its written submission in support of the application for costs by: 4:00 pm on 14 September 2015.

4. Barry Kenneth Williams file in the Tribunal one (1) copy and give to the Queensland Building and Construction Commission one (1) copy of his submissions in reply to the application for costs by: 4:00 pm on 5 October 2015

5. Unless either party applies for an oral hearing by 6 October 2015, the application for costs will be determined by the Tribunal on the papers, based on the written submissions from the parties.

CATCHWORDS:

OCCUPATIONTAL REGULATIONAL MATTER – DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS – BUILDER where defective building work – inadequate support for top level of building – whether negligent or incompetent – suspension of licence

Queensland Building Services Authority Act 1991 (Qld), s 88, s 89, s 91
Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991 (Qld), Schedule 1, s 55

Williams v Queensland Building Services Authority [2013] QCAT 589
Briginshaw v Briginshaw (1938) 60 CLR 336
Queensland Building Services Authority v Bryan Graham Stanley D295-96 [1997] QBT 16
Queensland Building Services Authority v Wilkins [2012] QCAT 582
Queensland Building Services Authority v Chandra & Anor [2013] QCAT 628
Queensland Building and Construction Commission v D Block Constructions Pty Ltd [2015] QCAT 62

APPEARANCES:

APPLICANT:

Queensland Building and Construction Commission represented by Mr S Formby of counsel

RESPONDENT:

Barry Kenneth Williams

REASONS FOR DECISION

Mr Williams is the holder of ‘Builder – Low Rise’ licence number 1149329 and trades under the name, ‘Williams Brothers Builders’. On 21 December 2012, the Queensland Building Services Authority applied to the Tribunal seeking a number of orders including that pursuant to s 89(i) of the Queensland Building Services Authority Act 1991 (Qld) (the Act), proper grounds exist for taking disciplinary action against Mr Williams in that on a date or dates unknown between 16 June 2010 and 18 September 2011, Mr Williams was negligent or incompetent in carrying out tribunal work under his licence at a particular property at Brighton, Queensland. The Queensland Building Services Authority is now known as the Queensland Building and Construction Commission and will be referred to as the QBCC in these reasons.
In his opening address, Mr Formby submitted that s 55 in Schedule 1 of the current Queensland Building and Construction Commission…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

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Details

Case: [2015] QCAT 355
Decision Date: 24 August 2015

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the matter of Queensland Building and Construction Commission versus Barry Kenneth Williams, the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal was tasked with determining whether disciplinary action was justified against Williams, a licensed builder, following allegations of negligent or incompetent building work. Specifically, the Tribunal examined whether there were proper grounds for suspending Williams' builder's licence under section 89(i) of the Queensland Building Services Authority Act 1991, given his alleged failure to provide adequate support for the top level of a building.

The Tribunal needed to decide whether Williams' conduct warranted disciplinary action under the Act, focusing on whether his actions amounted to incompetence or negligence. The central issue was whether the evidence presented by the Queensland Building and Construction Commission sufficiently demonstrated that Williams' work was substandard and posed a risk to public safety and welfare, thereby justifying the suspension of his licence. The Tribunal also had to consider the principles of natural justice and procedural fairness in its decision-making process.

After evaluating the evidence, the Tribunal found that there were indeed proper grounds for taking disciplinary action against Williams. The Tribunal concluded that the evidence presented by the Commission demonstrated that Williams had failed to provide adequate support for the top level of the building, which constituted a significant risk to public safety. The Tribunal found Williams' conduct to be negligent and incompetent, warranting the indefinite suspension of his builder's licence. The Tribunal also directed the parties to file written submissions regarding the application for costs and set deadlines for these submissions, with an option for an oral hearing if either party applied by a specified date.

Orders

Orders of the court

1. Proper grounds exist for taking disciplinary action against Barry Kenneth Williams pursuant to s 89(i) of the Queensland Building Services Authority Act 1991.

2. Barry Kenneth Williams’ builder’s licence number 1149329 is suspended indefinitely.

The Tribunal further directs that:

5. Unless either party applies for an oral hearing by 6 October 2015, the application for costs will be determined by the Tribunal on the papers, based on the written submissions from the parties.

Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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