Our Construction Law Services
Construction law is not a single discipline — it is a complex ecosystem of contractual, technical, regulatory, and commercial challenges that demand specialist expertise at every stage of a project's lifecycle. At Construction.Lawyer, we provide Australia's most comprehensive construction law practice, offering end-to-end legal and technical services from pre-contract advice through to international arbitration. Our dual-qualified engineer-lawyers bring a perspective that no ordinary law firm can match: we have managed construction sites, operated Primavera P6 scheduling software, interpreted geotechnical reports, administered contracts on major infrastructure, mining, and commercial building projects, and sat in the project director's chair making the very decisions our clients face every day.
Our services are available from all five of our offices — Brisbane (Head Office, Suite 140, 167 Eagle Street, Brisbane QLD 4000), Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, and Darwin — and we act for clients across Australia and internationally. We offer fixed-fee options for many of our services, including contract reviews, payment claim preparations, and domestic building contract advice.
Contract Services
Our Contract Services practice is designed to identify and neutralise risks before they germinate, and to provide ongoing administrative support that preserves your contractual rights throughout the project.
- Contract Review & Advice — Thorough review of AS4000, AS2124, AS4902, ABIC, MBA, HIA, FIDIC, NEC4 and bespoke contracts. Fixed-fee options available.
- Domestic Building Contracts — Specialist advice for homeowners and residential builders under Queensland, NSW and Victorian legislation.
- Commercial Contract Drafting — Bulletproof head contracts, subcontracts, joint venture agreements, consultancy agreements and bespoke construction agreements.
- Contract Administration — Ongoing practical support, templates, flowcharts and procedures for payment claims, EOT claims and rights-preserving correspondence.
- Construction Negotiation — Principled negotiation for contract settlements, variation agreements, acceleration proposals and commercial resolutions.
Dispute Resolution & Litigation
When relationships break down, you need lawyers who can resolve conflicts efficiently and cost-effectively, using the most appropriate mechanism for your specific circumstances.
- Building Dispute Resolution — Residential and commercial disputes across all Australian forums, from QBCC conciliation to Supreme Court litigation.
- Construction Litigation — Expert representation in QCAT, District Court, Supreme Court, Federal Court and Court of Appeal.
- Debt Recovery — Multi-pathway pursuit of unpaid debts through SOP adjudication, subcontractors' charges, statutory demands and court proceedings.
- Security of Payment — Payment claims, payment schedules, adjudication applications and enforcement under the BIF Act.
- Adjudication — Fast-track dispute resolution under the BIF Act, typically resolving within ~60 days.
- Mediation — Facilitated negotiation with an independent mediator to achieve binding settlement agreements.
- Arbitration — Private, binding dispute resolution under ACICA, ICC and UNCITRAL rules.
- Expert Determination — Binding technical determination by an independent expert for discrete disputes.
- Contract Termination — Strategic advice on termination for convenience and termination for cause, including wrongful termination defence.
Claims & Technical Services
This is where our dual qualifications as engineer-lawyers deliver their greatest advantage. We do not need to engage external delay analysts or quantity surveyors — we perform this work ourselves.
- Claims Preparation — Variation claims, EOT claims, delay and disruption claims, prolongation claims and acceleration claims.
- CPM Delay Analysis — Critical Path Method analysis using Primavera P6, P3 and MS Project for prospective and retrospective delay claims.
- Project Recovery — Rapid intervention to stabilise troubled projects, protect entitlements and chart a path back to profitability.
- Insurance Claims — Defects and rectification claims, contract works insurance, professional indemnity claims and policy interpretation.
- Defects Claims — Structural and non-structural defect claims, warranty disputes and rectification cost recovery.
- Delay & Disruption Claims — Quantification of extended site overheads, reduced productivity and acceleration costs.
- Variations Claims — Substantiation and valuation of directed and constructive variations under all major standard forms.
- Liquidated Damages — Defence against excessive delay damages and advice on enforceability of penalty clauses.
- Practical Completion — Advice on certification, defects liability periods, final account and release of security.
- Subcontractors' Charges — Direct charge over money owed by principals to head contractors under Chapter 4 of the BIF Act.
Advanced Legal Services
Our Advanced Legal Services practice addresses the most complex and sophisticated construction law matters.
- Expert Witness Services — Independent expert evidence on delay, quantum, construction methodology and defects.
- International Arbitration — Cross-border disputes under LCIA, SIAC, ICC and UNCITRAL rules.
- Cross-Border Disputes — Governing law, jurisdiction and enforcement of awards across international borders.
- Supreme Court Litigation — High-value, complex construction disputes in state Supreme Courts.
- Federal Court Litigation — Matters under Commonwealth legislation, corporations law and cross-border disputes.
- District Court Litigation — Medium-complexity construction disputes and appeals from lower courts.
- County Court Litigation — Victorian construction disputes and debt recovery proceedings.
- VCAT Representation — Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal for domestic building and planning disputes.
- QCAT Representation — Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal for domestic building disputes under $100,000.
- NCAT Representation — NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal for residential building and strata disputes.
- SACAT Representation — South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal for building disputes.
- ACAT Representation — ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal for building and construction disputes.
- SAT Representation — State Administrative Tribunal of Western Australia for building disputes.
- NTCAT Representation — Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal for building and construction disputes.
- Home Warranty Claims — Statutory insurance claims under Queensland, NSW and Victorian home warranty schemes.
- Builder Insolvency — Advice on statutory demands, winding-up proceedings and creditor protection.
- HIA Contracts — Review, drafting and dispute resolution for Housing Industry Association contracts.
- ABIC Contracts — Architect-administered building contracts for major and minor works.
- Training & Mentoring — Bespoke in-house education for contract administration, claims preparation and dispute avoidance.
- QBCC Matters — Licence applications, show cause responses, disciplinary hearings and licence restoration.
Industry
Our industry practice addresses the unique legal and technical challenges of Australia's most demanding construction sectors. We combine deep sector knowledge with hands-on project experience to deliver advice that is commercially informed and technically precise. From renewable energy projects and mining EPC contracts to defence construction and remote logistics, our dual-qualified engineer-lawyers bring a perspective that no ordinary law firm can match.
- Renewables & Energy Law — Wind, solar, BESS, geothermal and hybrid project contracts, claims and disputes.
- Wind Farm Law — TSA, BOP and performance disputes for onshore and emerging offshore wind projects.
- Solar Farm Law — Utility-scale PV, EPC disputes, inverter performance and grid connection matters.
- BESS Energy Storage Law — Battery storage performance, thermal management, fire safety and FCAS disputes.
- Mining & Resources Disputes — EPC contracts, performance disputes, variations and termination for mining and resources projects across Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
- Defence Construction — Security requirements, compliance and contractual frameworks for defence infrastructure projects.
- FIFO & Remote Projects — Mobilisation costs, camp facilities, transport and logistics contracts for remote workforce projects.
- Remote Project Advice — Indigenous engagement, logistics, supply chain and camp contracts for remote and community projects.
Services by Location
Every service is available in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Darwin. Select a city below to view location-specific guidance, local legislation references, and direct contact details for that office.
How to Choose the Right Service
Homeowners should focus on domestic building contracts and contract review before signing, and building dispute resolution if problems arise.
Builders and contractors need contract review before tendering, contract administration during the project, and claims preparation or Security of Payment when disputes arise.
Subcontractors should use Security of Payment for payment recovery, subcontractors' charges if the head contractor is insolvent, and debt recovery for multiple pathways.
Principals and developers need contract drafting for protection, contract review for risk assessment, and dispute resolution when contractors fail to perform.
Consultants benefit from contract review for liability limitation, and insurance claims for professional indemnity matters.
Our Service Guarantee
Direct access to the principal lawyer. Your matter is handled by a qualified engineer-lawyer with the expertise to manage it effectively — not by a junior solicitor learning on the job.
Fixed-fee transparency. For many services — including contract reviews, payment claim preparations, and domestic building contract advice — we offer fixed-fee arrangements that provide certainty from the outset.
No hidden costs. Our fee proposals are comprehensive and include all anticipated costs — there are no hidden disbursements or unexpected charges.
Regular progress updates. We provide regular progress updates at intervals appropriate to your matter — weekly for urgent matters, fortnightly for active matters, and monthly for matters in a monitoring phase.
Commercial focus. We do not litigate for the sake of it. Every recommendation is driven by one question: what outcome serves your commercial interests best?