Security Of Payment Act Adjudication
There are two ways a disputed Claim made under the Security Of Payment Act can be determined.
Security Of Payment Act Dispute Resolution Options!
The first is summary judgment through a court.
This option is available only if the respondent has failed to serve a payment schedule within 10 business days of receiving a payment claim served validly under the Security Of Payment Act.
The second option is to apply for adjudication. No attendance in person is required.
Adjudication is the process used to determine if a Payment Claim made under the Security Of Payment Act is payable and in what amount by means of both parties lodging written submissions together with supporting evidence to an adjudicator who determines what amount is payable, when it is due and if the respondent is liable to pay interest, and who is liable to pay the adjudicator’s fees..
The Adjudication process takes about 2-3 weeks.
First, a claimant lodges an application and then must serve an exact copy of the application on the respondent.
Next, an Adjudicator will accept a nomination for the matter – an adjudicator must be appointed within 4 business days of the application being lodged.
The Respondent has either 5 business days from receipt of the copy of the application or 2 business days from the appointment of the adjudicator whichever is the later to submit a response.
The Adjudicator must determine the application within 10 business days of being appointed.
Once the Adjudicator has determined the matter the respondent has 5 business days to pay in full.
If the respondent does not pay within this time the claimant may apply for an Adjudication Certificate which is then entered as a judgement in court to enable enforcement proceedings to begin.
Security Of Payment Act Adjudication Is Based On Each State’s Own Legislation
Each of the state’s legislation differs slightly but generally operates the same way, at least in principal.
Security Of Payment Act Adjudication focuses on ensuring that jurisdictional requirements are met so that the adjudicator is actually empowered by the Security Of Payment Act, and determining that the claimant has a right to invoke the Security Of Payment Act to claim their alleged entitlement, and then, most would say, most importantly, the adjudicator values the claim either in accordance with the contract or other evidence before him.