The Department of Justice has released for community feedback draft legislation intended to replace Queensland’s outdated property laws.
In a statement, the Department said the Bill was developed to modernise property laws in the State with contemporary language that reflected current commercial practice.
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Shannon Fentiman said the current Property Law Act 1974 had generally served the State well for nearly 50 years, but it was time for it to be repealed and replaced with modern legislation.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,” Ms Fentiman said.
“This is legislation that will most likely affect everyone in our State at some stage of their lives, so all Queenslanders deserve the chance to have their say.”
The Department has developed the legislation based largely on the recommendations of the Commercial and Property Law Research Centre at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), following its independent review of current legislation.
Ms Fentiman said QUT’s final report made 232 recommendations, the bulk of which involved the repeal of outdated provisions or the redrafting of existing provisions in modern language.
“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,” the Minister said.
“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 be well informed,” she said.
The closing date for written submissions is 21 October.
