The appellant and respondent entered into a written subcontract whereby the appellant agreed to construct roadworks for a lump sum payment. The appellant achieved practical completion of the works and submitted a payment claim to the respondent. The appellant sought orders for payment of the disputed sum pursuant to s 78(2)(a) of the Building Industry Fairness (Security of Payment) Act 2017 (Qld) (BIFA) and the terms of the subcontract.
The question for the Court was whether a construction contract provided a period within which the respondent was required to provide a payment schedule for the purposes of s 76 of the BIF Act. The Court found that it did. In doing so, the Court read together all relevant provisions of the contract that related to the giving of a payment schedule, and distinguished the contract from the one in Thiess v Lane Cove Nominees.
Damian Clothier KC (leading B Vass) appeared for the appellant, instructed by Piper Alderman.
The judgment is published here.
