Law Issues

Once again the news features people who have died in a school building and because a hospital collapsed.
 
They did not die because of Earthquake. Earthquakes don't kill. No! I'm not an idiot. I'm an architect.
 
I should qualify my statement, Earthquakes don't kill unless a deep rupture opens directly beneath people, as in the time of Moses to Korah in the wilderness.

Q: I know a signed fax is a legal document but what is the legal status of an email?
I am considering varying clause R1 of the ABIC SW-1 2002 to permit email correspondence without providing a signed copy transmittal. Obviously there is no ink signature and this may make the documents not legal.

A:The question of whether email is “legal” (that is, a valid form of communication) is a separate question to whether a contract may allow for email communication to be valid. In relation to the “legality” of email, the question has to be considered against a general law background (either where no contractual relationship exists between the parties communicating with each other or, if there is a contractual relationship, the terms of that relationship don’t (or don’t adequately) deal with email communications). For instance, if you and I have no existing contractual relationship, is it “legal” for me to send you a letter of demand by email? The short answer is that we won’t know until the matter has been tested in court.

Recently architects have observed a trend of Council planners forcing design changes for aesthetic reasons. To force a change to a design may have complex implications.

How the owners of a jetty discovered it was dangerous after returning from overseas. How they bought the timber to repair it. How Council found out. How I found myself producing detail drawings to obtain a D.A. for an existing jetty. How I found that the Lake Macquarie Council's DCP required a Visual Impact Statement. How I found out that even to put up a warning sign required a D.A. application!