Building lawyers are a vital asset to anyone undertaking property construction. Although they work in a specific field, they have the legal knowledge and skills to provide a wide array of services and settle various disputes.
Here is what building lawyers do and why you should never overlook enlisting their services:
A building lawyer’s role
In the most obvious, simple terms, building lawyers provide legal advice regarding a property’s construction. They advise and advocate for different organizations throughout a property build, including head contractors and construction managers, project managers, principals, trade contractors, and subcontractors as well as consultants and suppliers.
Building lawyers have specific knowledge and skills regarding contracts, and they can advise parties across the construction process about such contracts and issues that could arise out of them (defects, payment issues, delays, etc.).
Essentially, building lawyers are there to cover all legal bases and issues regarding a property build.
What is their specialty?
A building lawyer may specialize in a specific area relating to construction.
For example, particular building lawyers may specialize in the following areas:
- Specified areas of construction (e.g. strata projects, residential projects, public-private partnerships, commercial projects, infrastructure projects, etc.);
- Contract formation (these are generally known as “front-end” lawyers);
- Disputes (these are generally known as “back-end” lawyers).
This being said, many building lawyers cover most or all construction areas and advise most parties and organizations. However, they may not carry the same profound knowledge as someone who works in a specific construction area. If you have a particular problem that needs rectifying, it may be best to search for a building lawyer with specialized knowledge in that area.
Most building lawyers will have a degree of working knowledge in areas outside construction contracting, but may not have specialized expertise in those areas.
These examples include:
- Occupational health and safety, including dealing with safety breaches or safety incidents;
- Property transactions, including buying, leasing, or subdividing real estate);
- Industrial relations problems, including industrial relation dispute handling and enterprise agreement negotiation;
- Insurance claims and disputes.
What do front-end lawyers do?
Building lawyers are able to provide necessary advice when commencing a project. This is referred to as “front-end” advice.
Front-end advice is for principals like property owners, occupiers, developers, etc. and includes the following services:
- How to structure a project’s construction phase;
- The most suitable contract types;
- Preparing conditions of tender;
- Preparing a contract form
- Considering and responding to contract clarifications receive from specific tenderers involved in the construction process;
- Letters of appointment, letters of intent, and early work contracts;
- Amending and finalizing the contract form.
When it comes to contractors, suppliers, and consultants, services include:
- Analyzing contracts and identifying key risk areas involved with the construction process;
- Preparing tender qualifications;
- Providing advice for, and negotiating on, the terms of letters of appointment, letters of intent, and early work engagements;
- Advising on ancillary project documents, including tripartite financing agreements and third-party access deeds;
- Advising, drafting, and negotiating contract amendments.
And back-end lawyers?
Conversely, “back-end” lawyers provide legal support relating to construction disputes or situations that could eventually become a dispute. These are typically related to issues like payments, delays, and defects.
Back-end lawyers typically have experience in resolving disputes through arbitration, mediation, litigation, and expert determination. Their area of expertise lies in providing advice on how to best resolve a dispute that has arisen in the construction process.
