The King v Jacobs Group (Australia) Pty Ltd formerly known as Sinclair Knight Merz

The High Court of Australia considered the appeal in *The King v Jacobs Group (Australia) Pty Ltd formerly known as Sinclair Knight Merz*. The dispute concerned the interpretation of a notice of intention to claim an entitlement under the *Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2002* (NSW) (the Act). The appellant, the King, sought to challenge a decision of the Court of Appeal of New South Wales which had overturned a decision of the primary judge.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether a notice of intention to claim an entitlement, which was served on the respondent by the appellant, satisfied the requirements of section 8(1) of the Act. Specifically, the Court had to determine if the notice sufficiently identified the construction work or the related goods or services to which the claim related, and whether it indicated an intention to seek payment for that work or those goods or services.

The High Court held that the notice served by the appellant did not comply with section 8(1) of the Act. Their Honours reasoned that the notice was too vague and did not adequately identify the specific construction work or the related goods and services for which payment was being claimed. The Court emphasised that a notice under section 8(1) must provide sufficient particularity to enable the recipient to understand the nature and scope of the claim being made, thereby allowing them to assess its validity and respond appropriately. The principles of statutory interpretation required a strict adherence to the plain language of the provision, which mandated a clear identification of the subject matter of the claim.

The appeal was dismissed.