In Singh v A1 Home Builders Pty Ltd [2025] NSWSC 1521, Williams J considered whether a failure to serve a notice of acceptance of an adjudication application under s 19 of the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999 (NSW) (SOP Act) constitutes jurisdictional error. An adjudication application was made by the builder who misspelled the respondents’ email address. The adjudicator then sent the notice of acceptance of their appointment under s 19(1) of the SOP Act to the email address as was stated in the adjudication application, with the effect that the respondents did not receive the notice. The adjudicator then proceeded to make a determination. Her Honour found at [46] – [50] that an adjudicator is not appointed to determine the adjudication application unless and until they accept the adjudication application by serving notice of their acceptance on the claimant and the respondent as required by s 19(1). As one of the basic and essential requirements set out in Brodyn Pty Ltd v Davenport [2004] NSWCA 394 included: “[t]he reference of the application to an eligible adjudicator, who accepts the application (ss 18 and 19)”, her Honour held that the adjudicator had no jurisdiction to embark on the adjudication process and to make the determination.
Stay up to date with the latest in construction law with our brand new seminars:
· Construction Law Insights
· Construction Law Conference: Avoiding Risks and Managing Disputes
· Building and Construction Law: Key Decisions and Challenges
Disclaimer: The statements, analyses, opinions and conclusions in Legalwise Insights are those of the respective authors and not of Legalwise Seminars Pty Ltd which acts only in the capacity as editorial co- ordinator of the content in Legalwise Insights. No part of any article can be regarded as legal or financial advice. Although all care has been taken in the preparation of all articles, readers must not alter their position or refrain from doing so in reliance on any information contained therein. Neither the respective authors nor Legalwise Seminars Pty Ltd accept or undertake any duty of care relating to any part of Legalwise Insights
Liability limited by a scheme approved under the Professional Standards Legislation
Copyright declaration: the text to this article is extracted from the Security of Payment (NSW) chapter in the Thomson Reuters for the loose-leaf subscription service, Commercial Arbitration Law & Practice, contributed by Vikram Misra.