DRAFT PROPERTY LAW BILL RELEASED FOR PUBLIC FEEDBACK

Draft legislation intended to replace Queensland’s outdated property laws has been made publicly available for community feedback.

Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Shannon Fentiman said the Bill had been developed to modernise property laws in the state with contemporary language that reflected current commercial practice.

“Owning and dealing with property, establishing co-ownership arrangements, signing and enforcing lease agreements and managing mortgages are major concerns that affect Queenslanders everywhere, so it is essential that our property laws are modern and robust,” Minister Fentiman said.

“The current Property Law Act 1974 has generally served our state well for nearly 50 years, but it’s time for it to be repealed and replaced with modern legislation.

“Before we introduce the Bill to the Parliament, we want to hear from stakeholders and interested Queenslanders to better inform policy options that need settling in the Bill.

“This is legislation that will most likely effect everyone in our State at some stage of their lives, so all Queenslanders deserve the chance to have their say.”

Minister Fentiman said the Bill had been developed based largely on the recommendations of the Commercial and Property Law Research Centre at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), following its broad-ranging, independent review of current legislation from 2013 – 18.

“QUT’s final report made 232 recommendations, the bulk of which are for the repeal of outdated provisions or the redrafting of existing provisions in modern language,” she said.

“While QUT’s recommendations have generally been adopted in the Bill, some property industry, legal and academic stakeholders expressed disagreement in certain areas during recent targeted consultation.

“To assist the public in considering and commenting on the draft Bill, areas of disagreement have been highlighted in the Consultation Paper so that submissions can been well-informed.”

Minister Fentiman said the Department of Justice and Attorney-General had also recently consulted on a draft Bill for implementing a statutory seller disclosure scheme in Queensland.

“The results of that consultation are currently being considered, and it is expected that a new seller disclosure scheme will be incorporated as part of the Property Law Bill 2022,” Minister Fentiman said.

“However, further consideration needs to be given to whether flooding history information should be included in the seller disclosure statement, so this new consultation will also seek views on that matter as well.”

Written submissions in response to the draft Property Law Bill can be emailed to PropertyLawActReview@justice.qld.gov.au.

The closing date for written submissions is 5pm on 21 October 2022.

Further information is available at https://www.justice.qld.gov.au/community-engagement/community-consultation/current.