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ARTICLE · 23 FEBRUARY 2017

Construction Professionals And The Peer Professional Opinion Defence In Australia

Clyde & Co
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Peer professional opinion defence - no 'get out of jail free' card for construction professionals

AustraliaReal Estate and Construction
Maxine Tills
Maxine Tills
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Peer professional opinion defence - no 'get out of jail free' card for construction professionals

Since the recommendations made by the Review of the Law of Negligence Final Report (Ipp Report) in 2002, each Australian state has enacted legislation that provides for a defence of peer professional opinion.  In Western Australia, the defence applies only to health professionals and, despite a wider application in the other states, the majority of cases dealing with the defence are medical negligence cases. The defence has been argued in a number of cases regarding claims against engineers, notably in New South Wales, most with little success. 

The relevant provision in New South Wales is Section 5O of the Civil Liability Act 2002 (New South Wales) (CLA).  The effect of the section is as discussed in Dobler v Havlerson: 1

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