Melbourne Law Masters

Postgraduate Student Forum

Please note the following information, provided to us by Paul Chynoweth at Salford University in the UK.  MB 30 Sep 10

http://www.lawlectures.co.uk/w113/pg-student-forum.htm

A new Postgraduate Student Forum exists to provide peer-mentoring support and networking opportunities for postgraduate students working in construction law and associated areas. Membership is free, and is open to postgraduate research students and to those undertaking a dissertation as part of a taught postgraduate programme. It is affiliated to the CIB Working Commission (W113) on Law and Dispute Resolution and is recognised as a CIB student chapter.

It has an ambitious programme of academic and social activities planned for the coming year. It has a web page at http://www.lawlectures.co.uk/w113/pg-student-forum.htm, an associated Facebook group, and will be launching its own email discussion list.

The Forum is led by PhD student Francis Moor and interested students are invited to contact her for further information. Francis can be emailed at f.moor@edu.salford.ac.uk.

New Law Library Construction Law page

http://www.law.unimelb.edu.au/lrc/pub/links/Construction_law.cfm?SiteArea=Library&Level2=90

Our colleagues in the Law Library have set up a page with direct links to many of the most useful construction law resources - texts, journals, weblinks etc.  I hope you find it useful and encourage your feedback:  in particular, please let us know if there are any materials or links that you think should be inserted into it.  MB 4 Aug 10

Inaugural Society of Construction Law Australia Conference

Our Program is pleased to be associated with the Society of Construction Law Australia.  Ian Bailey is Chair of the Society and Matthew Bell is Chair of its Academic Sub-Committee, and many of our students are members of the Society. 

The Society held its inaugural conference in Perth on 18-19 June 2010.  It provided an excellent opportunity to bring together the Australian and international construction law community.  Further information can be found at www.scl.org.au. 

Access to Informa Construction Law Products - updated

Access to the Informa suite of on-line construction law products, including the International Construction Law Review and Building Law Reports is now via the University library catalogue.  Follow the instructions within the relevant record - eg, for the ICLR, click on the "Connect to electronic resource (University of Melbourne only)" link and it should prompt you for your University username and password.  You should also click on the link to obtain a password within the catalogue record as you might be prompted for this within the Informa site.

If you have any difficulties accessing thiese, please contact the Law Library .  I would be grateful for any feedback you might have about the usefulness of these, and other, online resources.  MB 3 June 10

Proportionate liability reform

 The schemes for proportionate liability (under Part IVAA of the Wrongs Act (Vic) and equivalent legislation at Commonwealth and State level) have generated a great deal of controversy since their introduction half a decade ago.  One of the key criticisms has been the lack of a consistent approach in the legislation enacted in the various States and Territories. 

In a significant step towards such a national approach, the Standing Committee of Attorneys General has authorised the publication on its website of Reports prepared by Tony Horan and Professor JLR Davis.  Mr Horan is a Senior Fellow within our Program and one of the coordinators of Construction Risk:  Allocation and Insurance.  He was, when writing his report, a Partner at DLA Phillips Fox and is now at the Melbourne Bar.  Professor Davis is Emeritus Professor at ANU.

You will be aware of the many detailed critiques of the schemes published in recent years, including those by our Senior Fellow Andrew Stephenson and Justices Byrne (the Patron of our Program) and McDougall.  Much of the criticism has been directed against the schemes in their entirety and, in particular, their potential to unravel centuries of jurisprudence relating to joint and several liability.  Other critiques have focused on the workability (or otherwise) of particular aspects, including the lack of consistency of approaches between different Australian jurisdictions (for example, the fact that some schemes allow for contracting out whereas others do not).

The next chapter in the history of this crucial area seems set to be written, based upon two very significant works produced for the National Justice CEOs Group.  They have now been published on the SCAG website.  Mr Horan's Report canvasses the history, purpose and commentary in respect of the schemes, and provides recommendations as to its review.  Professor Davis's Report reviews Mr Horan's Report and puts forward more detailed proposals.

The Reports will no doubt themselves be the subject of detailed study and analysis.  I think it worthwhile making the following observations at the outset:  

• the terms of reference for Mr Horan's Report were to seek to make the legislation "more workable, consistent and certain" - hence, his Report (and Professor Davis's Report which builds upon it) are not directed towards whether there should be proportionate liability legislation at all; rather, as Mr Horan notes, the underlying principles are to ensure that:  
  • the effect of the legislation is consistent with the purpose for which it was enacted;
  • the meaning of the legislation is clear; and
  • the legislation is workable in practice; 
• both Reports (and especially Mr Horan's) provide a very valuable repository of materials relevant to the schemes, including the legislation itself, cases upon it and critiques; and
• 12 proposals are set out in Professor Davis's Report, including (as proposal 11) that "the legislation in all jurisdictions prohibit parties to whom it would otherwise be applicable from contracting out of its terms".

MB 3 Sep 08

PC-1 and PSC-1 standard forms now available

Electronic copies of the standard-form PC-1 1998 Project contract and PSC-1 1998 Project Sub-Contract have been provided for use in your studies, courtesy of Clayton Utz.  These documents are for use only for the purposes of studies within Melbourne Law Masters subjects and are subject to the copyright restrictions and other conditions noted within the forms. MB 28 Aug 08

Natalie Wieland available to assist with legal research skills

Many construction law students are already taking advantage of the Academic Skills Support services provided by Dr Anthony McCosker.  I'm delighted to announce that Anthony has now been joined by Natalie Wieland as Legal Research Skills Adviser. 

Natalie has provided legal research training to judges, articled clerks, Law Reform Commissions, government departments and the Leo Cussen Institute.

A practising solicitor for two years, initially in commercial law and then in family and criminal law, Natalie also worked in a voluntary capacity at Port Melbourne legal advisory service for 8 years. Upon completion of a Graduate Diploma in Management Information Systems, Natalie commenced training in legal research, initially with Computer Law Services and then Butterworths/LexisNexis, for three years. In 1999, Natalie established Bliss Consulting which provides legal research consulting services to the legal industry.

Natalie is available to give classroom presentations and/or hands-on database training sessions about different legal research topics. Staff at the Law Library Service Desk, the Melbourne Law Masters Office or the Student Centre can help students to book a half hour consultation with Natalie, who is located in Room 335 - Office of Teaching and Learning on the third floor of the Law Library. Natalie's hours are Monday, Tuesday and Friday mornings and all day Wednesday. Her email address is nwieland@unimelb.edu.au.  MB 18 Aug 08

 Justice Byrne and Assoc Prof Chan hear mock injunction applications

 On 27 June 2008, Justice David Byrne (Victorian Supreme Court Judge and Patron of our Construction Law Program) sat with Assoc Professor Philip Chan (National University of Singapore - undertaking part of his sabbatical at the Melbourne Law School) to hear injunction applications from students in Current Application of Legal Remedies.  We used the Law School's Moot Court Room.  A photo page is attached below as a souvenir.  MB 14 Jul 08
 

Considered having your research published in BDPS News?

I have received the following note from Dr Donald Charrett (who, as it happens, is an alumnus of our construction law program).  I encourage you to consider submitting an article to the BDPS News and would be very happy to assist you with the process.  MB 21 Apr 08

The Building Dispute Practitioner's Society provides a forum for the discussion and consideration of problems affecting the resolution of disputes arising out of building and engineering works.  It aims to advance the knowledge and expertise of persons concerned with such disputes, and to that end publishes a high-quality journal three or four times a year. BDPS News publishes articles and case notes on a wide range of issues of interest to practitioners, and is a valued reference for construction lawyers, consultants and those involved in the resolution of building disputes.  Details of the BDPS and BDPS News can be found at www.bdps.com.au.

Many papers prepared by students in the Melbourne University Construction Law program, appropriately edited, are suitable for publication in BDPS News.  The ideal length for such learned papers is around 4,000-6,000 pages, although longer papers will also be considered.  Students are encouraged to discuss possible papers with the Construction Law sub editor, Dr Donald Charrett on 03 9225 6886 or e-mail to d.charrett@vicbar.com.au.  Papers can be submitted electronically to be considered for possible publication directly to the editor Andrew Kincaid at akincaid@vicbar.com.au [now Kelvin Oldridge - koldridge@millsoakley.com.au MB].

The BDPS prize of $3000 is awarded annually to the author/s of an original essay on construction law, building disputes or closely related topics, which has been published in the BDPS news during the 12 months prior to the BDPS Dinner in June each year.

In addition, Mr Richard Fink, who is case-notes editor for the BDPS News, has asked me to encourage you to submit case notes about construction law to the newsletter.  Richard's email address is richard_fink@hotmail.com.  MB 9 May 08 

Construction research resources - updated 19 Feb 09  

Did you know that the International Construction Law Review is available through the University library's supersearch site?  Or that the Society of Construction Law offers special access to the hundreds of papers on its site to students?  

I've posted below a presentation on construction research resources, including some links to useful websites.  Also, please note that we have law librarians with specialist expertise in construction law (including Lois Nichol, who presented to our Construction Contracts subject in April 2008 and to our Principles of Construction Law class in February 2009 - her presentation also is below).  

Please let the librarians know if you are having difficulties accessing any materials (print or on-line) or have any suggestions for additional resources.  It is through this feedback that they decide how to allocate resources to construction law materials. 

Examples of the resources we have been able to obtain because construction law students have demonstrated a demand are Construction Change Order Claims by Michael T Callahan, Calculating Lost Labor Productivity in Construction Claims by William Schwartzkopf and Construction Law Handbook by Robert F Cushman and James J Myers - all very useful additions to our stocks of materials on US construction law.

MB 29 Apr 08 

Dorter & Sharkey available on-line

The looseleaf version of Building and Construction Contracts in Australia, by our Senior Fellows John Dorter and John Sharkey AM, sits on the shelves of construction practices around the country.  It is now available to us on-line as well, via the "Popular Legal Databases" section of the Law Library website (go to Lawbook online and then follow the link to the database). 

Quite apart from the commentary on myriad legal issues, it is a good place to view many of the standard forms in common use (including AS 2124, AS 4000 and ABIC MW-1) - follow the links from the "Standard Forms" heading within the database.  MB 3 Apr 08.

Justice Byrne's paper 'Building Cases - A New Approach'

I have posted below, with his Honour's kind permission, a paper presented by our Patron, Justice David Byrne to the Building Dispute Practitioners' Society in Melbourne on 19 March 2008.  In it, his Honour outlines the approach taken by the Supreme Court in Practice Note no 1 of 2008, entitled 'Building Cases - A New Approach'.  The Practice note is available here.  MB 27 Mar 08

Paper by John Sharkey AM - the future of construction law litigation

Please have a look at the paper by John Sharkey AM posted below.  He delivered it at the construction law intensive which was held at Leo Cussen Institute on 18 March in conjunction with our construction law program (details below).  It provides a very important contribution to the ongoing issue about how construction law litigation can be improved and I commend it to all of you. 

It is posted here by kind permission of the Leo Cussen Institute and should not be circulated further.  If you wanted to cite it, you should refer to the "Construction Law Intensive held at Leo Cussen Institute, Melbourne, in association with the Melbourne Law School construction law program on 18 March 2008".  MB 20 Mar 08

Cash prizes on offer for excellent construction law writing!

I want to let you know about possibilities for winning not insubstantial quantities of money (not to mention the benefits of peer recognition) for your work:  

• follow this link to find out about the Law School's Student Published Research Prize;  
• follow this link for information about the Norman Royce Prize offered annually by the Society of Construction Arbitrators;  
• follow this link to find out about the Brooking Prize offered by the Society of Construction Law Australia;  
• see the note above for information about the Building Dispute Practitioners' Society Prize; and  
• follow this link (and see also the note above about the 2009 prize) for information about the Hudson Prize offered by the Society of Construction Law.

Please let Matthew know if you would like to discuss participation in these prizes further or have any general queries about having your work published.  MB 10 Nov 08

Notes for writing legal research papers

Wayne Jocic, a valued contributor to our construction law teaching over many years, has prepared a note on various aspects of presenting research papers.  He presented it to the first semester 2007 offering of Construction Contracts.  I thought it so useful that it was worthwhile publishing here for students in all subjects to have a read of it - you'll find it below.  MB 17 May 07

Legal Writing Resources website

The LAWResources website (http://www.law.unimelb.edu.au/LawResources/) provides a wealth of information about writing (and preparing for) essays, take home exams and other types of law assessment tasks.  Whilst it is aimed broadly at students across undergraduate and graduate studies, I think that everyone has something to gain from the advice and resources it sets out.

The site is password protected but you should be able to gain access - if you have any problems, please let me know.  I'd also be grateful for any feedback about whether it - or any of the other legal research resources available to you through the Law School  - is useful to you.  MB 21 Mar 07

BCL online

The Building and Construction Law Journal is now available on-line back to volume 1 - simply access "LawBook online" via the LRC's "popular legal databases" website (http://www.law.unimelb.edu.au/lrc/pub/legal_research/popular_databases.cfm).  MB 19 Feb 09

Justice Byrne's address at the Reception on 5 September 2007

Click here for an audio recording (available as a stream, or MP3 podcast) of the address entitled: 'The Future of Litigation of Construction Law Disputes' by The Honourable Justice Byrne, delivered at the reception to announce his Honour's appointment as Patron of the Construction Law Program on 5 September 2007. The address may also be downloaded as a PDF file. See also his Honour's subsequent address of 19 March 2008, as noted above. 

Other materials

By clicking on the links below, you'll find:  

• a flyer for the masterclass we held on 18 July 2006 in collaboration with Leo Cussen Institute; it was a forum for discussing the way forward for security of payment, especially in light of the significant amendments to the Victorian legislation (which were, in fact, passed on the afternoon of the masterclass); you'll find photos from the masterclass as well via the links below     
• our newsletters for current students and alumni (first edition circulated May 2006) 

Society of Construction Law Australia - Brooking Prize for Construction Law Essays

Deleted - entries closed 31 March 2010.  Please see www.scl.org.au.