This week WA's State Parliament passed the Construction Contracts Amendment Bill 2016 and it is currently awaiting assent. Following assent, contractors and subcontractors will immediately get the benefit of the extended timeframes for submitting adjudication applications.
This extension will apply even if a claim is out of time under the previous legislation, provided the claim meets the other requirements under the Act. So if you have missed the old 28-day deadline for adjudicating a claim and the claim falls within the new 90 business day period, you may be able to recover monies due before the Christmas break.
Unfortunately, contractors and subcontractors will need to wait a little longer for the reduced maximum payment term of 42 days – this will only be applicable to contracts entered into from 3 April 2017.
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