The Owners Strata Plan No 89005 v Stromer (No 3)

In this case, the owners of a strata plan, The Owners Strata Plan No 89005, sued Stromer over alleged breaches of duty in relation to the design and construction of a building. Stromer, in turn, filed a cross-claim against a builder, contending that the builder was responsible for the alleged defects. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether Stromer's cross-claim adequately identified the precautions the building supervisor should have taken to manage the risk of harm, as required by section 37 of the Design and Building Practitioners Act 2020 (NSW). The court had to determine whether the Scott Schedule provided by Stromer met this requirement. The court also considered whether the cross-claim was defective under rule 13.4 of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW).

The court found that Stromer's cross-claim was defective as it did not sufficiently identify the precautions the building supervisor should have taken. The Scott Schedule did not provide a detailed explanation of the precautions or how they related to the alleged risk of harm. The court held that the cross-claim did not comply with the statutory duty under section 37 of the Act. As a result, the cross-claim was dismissed. The court also noted that the cross-claim did not disclose a reasonable cause of action against the builder.

The court ordered that Stromer pay the costs of the proceeding.