by Peter Mericka B.A., LL.BReal Estate Lawyer Qualified Practising Conveyancer VictoriaDirector Lawyers Real Estate Pty Ltd Many, if not most, lawyers and conveyancers play along with the pretence that it is the role of the estate agent to advise the purchaser and the vendor on contract law, and to prepare and execute the contract of sale on behaof of both parties. It would appear that lawyers and conveyancers have found that it is cheaper...
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by Tim O’Dwyer M.A., LL.BSolicitorConsumer Advocate watchdog@argonautlegal.com.au Queensland’s Office of Fair Trading has lost, and lost badly, a landmark case mounted in the Commercial and Consumer Tribunal against Gold Coast solicitor Donald Dickie. The implications of this decision, which Fair Trading decided not to appeal, are likely to significantly affect residential property sales and conveyancing practices across Queensland. Attorney-General Kerry Shine, the Bligh Government’s minister responsible for the Fair Trading portfolio, may need to...
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by Tim O’Dwyer M.A., LL.BSolicitorConsumer Advocate watchdog@argonautlegal.com.au Below are comments I have received independently from a couple of legal colleagues. They are clearly quite concerned about the ‘costs consequences’ of conveyancing solicitors’, rather than real estate agents’, preparing sales contracts. The first comment (slightly edited) comes from a North Queensland practitioner. The second (also edited a tad) is from a Brisbane suburban solicitor. COALFACE CONCERNS “I enjoy your Real Estate Blog, and particularly the...
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by Peter Mericka B.A., LL.BReal Estate Lawyer Qualified Practising Conveyancer VictoriaDirector Lawyers Real Estate Pty Ltd This is a comment submitted in response to the previous posting on this site. While I cannot help but be annoyed about the apparent weakness (personal and professional) of the lawyer who expresses it, it does seem to sum up the situation: “While I am proud to confirm that I am a legal practitioner, I cannot identify myself...
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by Peter Mericka B.A., LL.BReal Estate Lawyer Qualified Practising Conveyancer VictoriaDirector Lawyers Real Estate Pty Ltd On 3 August, 2007 I published a posting titled “Richard Wood Solicitors – Gifts To Agents For Client Referrals“. On 13 August, 2007 a person identified only as “David” posted the first of a number of comments attacking me personally on the basis of my ethics. The attack would have been unremarkable, except for the fact that the estate...
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OPINION by Tim O’Dwyer M.A., LL.B Queensland Solicitor & Consumer Advocate watchdog@argonautlegal.com.au Chief Justice of Queensland Paul de Jersey has warned my State’s lawyers, when they write letters of demand on behalf of clients, to be careful before resorting to any “even arguably threatening conduct”. His warning came recently in the course of the dismissal of a disciplinary action taken against Gold Coast solicitor Michael David Sing. This application was made by the Legal Services...
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by Peter Mericka B.A., LL.B Real Estate Lawyer and Qualified Practising Conveyancer Victoria Lawyers Real Estate Most real estate consumers are aware that real estate contracts are biased heavily in favour of the vendor, and contain a minefield of terms and conditions. But very few realise that some contracts contain “booby traps” that can do serious damage to BOTH parties! First, we refer readers to our last posting about auction bullying. The auction is an...
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by Tim O’Dwyer Solicitor* A solicitor, recently discharged from bankruptcy, has given an enforceable undertaking to Queensland’s Office of Fair Trading after consistently failing to comply properly with a consumer protection law. He is not the first. The undertaking records that Fair Trading’s Chief Executive “reasonably believes” Gold Coast solicitor Gregory Pointon contravened Section 365B of the Property Agents and Motor Dealers Act by not declaring to clients his relationships with real estate agents. The...
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by Tim O’Dwyer M.A., LL.B Queensland Solicitor & Consumer Advocate watchdog@argonautlegal.com.au On TV’s Neighbours once a cache of banknotes was dug up from a vacant lot in Ramsay Street. In the comic strip Calvin & Hobbes play-archaeologists found rare dinosaur bones in their backyard. In the real world people sometimes do discover long-forgotten money or valuable objects. Often lawyers then become involved to help determine who gets to keep this “buried treasure” because, unfortunately, the...
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OPINIONby Tim O’Dwyer M.A., LL.BSolicitorConsumer Advocate watchdog@argonautlegal.com.au Gold Coast solicitor Douglas McClelland, who charged conveyancing fees seven times higher than some other solicitors, has had his Practising Certificate suspended for four months. While cut-price Queensland law firms currently advertise buyers’ fees from as low as $350, McClelland charged 27 clients buying investment properties $2,500 per transaction. After investigation by the Queensland Law Society for the Legal Service Commissioner, no disciplinary action was taken against him...
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