Ahern Sierakowski specialise in all contract advice, building and construction advice, dispute resolution and litigation matters.
We act for builders, developers, sub-contractors, engineers and architects as well as owners of residential and commercial property on all building contract and payment disputes. We advise on all Building and Construction contracts including Australian Standards and HIA contracts.
We also handle disputes over building contract price increases for residential and commercial matters.
We know the WA construction industry, the contracts in use and the issues that arise in constructions works. We’ve done this work for 30 years. The advice we provide is not just legal advice.
We provide top tier services and top tier experience at substantially better rates than those of our competitors and we provide fixed fee costs wherever possible for all of our matters.
Our rates and fixed prices for commercial work and for building and construction matters are therefore lower than the prices charged by many Perth Commercial law firms.
It is important that your construction contract is carefully negotiated in order to avoid disputes and to protect the interest of all parties involved. Key aspects to negotiate include:
Properly drafted and negotiated construction contracts ensure that your contracts are balances, enforceable and protect the commercial objectives of all stakeholders.
Obtaining legal advice on your building and construction contracts is vital to ensuring that you are not exposed to significant financial and legal risks due to poorly drafted construction contracts.
Since the introduction of the Federal HomeBuilder and WA Building Bonus grants, there have been issues relating to delays in the construction process and claimed increases in builders’ costs, which we have seen builders look to pass on to owners under their building contracts.
Whilst the widely used Lump Sum Building Contract specifies a price for home construction, there are clauses that allow builders to increase the so-called ‘lump sum’ price in specific circumstances.
Owners are often unaware of these price increase clauses, their rights, and the process to dispute a price increase notice from the builder. If owners want legal advice on disputing a price increase notice they should seek that advice urgently, as there are strict time limits for the dispute process. Read more at Lump Sum Home Building Contracts.
See Building and Construction for more information. Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety have also issued a helpful guide – A Guide on price increases to home building work contracts.
We advise clients before they sign building contracts on important terms and help clients having problems with their builders.
For 30 years we have provided the best advice on all building contracts and sub-contracts and on building contract and sub-contracts disputes including payment claims, disputes over variations, Construction Contract Act claims, disputes over delays in building works and claims over defective works and appearances in the Supreme Court, District Court, Magistrates Court, State Administrative Tribunal and the Building Disputes Tribunal.
Our clients include builders and their customers, developers, sub-contractors and owners of both residential and commercial property needing advice and representation on all building contract and payment disputes.
We can also act for you in adjudications and arbitrations.
We provide the best fixed price for our advice to be provided usually within 5 working days. Further information can be found here regarding our fixed fees.
We provide the best fixed price advice on all building contracts and on building contract disputes including payment claims, disputes over variations and Construction Contract Acts claims.
Ahern Sierakowski Lawyers are experienced at providing legal advice and services in relation to all building contract disputes, including:
See also Building and Construction for more information on our success in handling construction cases.
It is important to include dispute resolution clauses that allow for the resolution of disputes quicker and possibly more cost effective than having to have a dispute resolved in lengthy litigation.
Vague or ambiguous descriptions of works that form the contract can lead to confusion, delays, budget overruns and disputes over milestones and deliverables.
It is vital for both parties that progress payments, milestones and variation approvals are clearly defined within the contract. Additionally, retention clauses also need to be sufficiently defined to avoid financial strain.
