Thursday, 9 December 2021
New Contract for Sale
The ACT Law Society Contract for Sale has been updated to accommodate e-conveyancing. The new version is numbered CS09.
These changes have been promulgated to the electronic Contract for Sale and will be available as of 9am Thursday 9 December 2021.
Members who still require access to the deprecated Contract (version CS08.1) can contact the Law Society for hard copies. Please email mail@actlawsociety.asn.au.
Members can download a new Schedule (pages 1 and 2) in Word format from our website.
The key changes from the previous version are detailed below.
Schedule page
- Spaces for facsimile details have been replaced with spaces for email details
- There are now tick box options for whether the transaction is an electronic transaction or not (and, if an electronic transaction, there is a space to insert who the nominated electronic network operator is, noting that currently this is limited to PEXA)
- There are now tick box options for whether land tax is to be adjusted or not
List of Seller Disclosure documents (page 2)
- The terminology has been updated (where applicable) to reflect the fact that the ACT no longer has paper certificates of title
- There is now a tick box for where a Building Management Statement is to be disclosed by a Seller (where applicable)
- There is now a tick box for where a Disclosure Statement is to be disclosed by a Seller (where applicable)
- There is now a space for applicable interest rates and for any legal costs and disbursements amount to be specified (where applicable)
Operative provisions (pages 3-21)
- Clause 1.1 – there are new definitions for the expressions ‘Adaptable Housing Dwelling’, ‘Building Management Statement’, ‘Disclosure Statement’, and ‘Land Titles Act’
- Clause 1.8 (new) – there is a statement agreeing that the Contract may be signed and/or exchanged electronically
- Clause 5 – this clause has been updated to require the Buyer to provide the Seller with a transfer of the Lease in the form prescribed by the Land Titles Act at least 7 days before the Date for Completion, to be returned by the Seller to the Buyer on Completion in registrable form (so including relevant Seller verification details)
- Clauses 8.1 and 8.2 – these clauses have been updated so that land tax is to be adjusted if the relevant tick box on the Schedule page is selected ‘Yes’
- Clause 13 – Compliance Certificate aspects have been moved to clause 14
- Clause 13 – a new electronic transaction clause has been included, which will apply if the relevant tick box on the Schedule page is selected ‘Yes’
- Clause 14 – as noted above, this clause now also deals with Compliance Certificate aspects
- Clause 22 – as noted above, applicable interest rates and legal costs and disbursements amounts are no longer specified within this clause, but rather in the space provided on page 2
- Clause 26.2.5 – this clause now provides for notice by way of email, and removes the option for notice by way of facsimile
Any questions about the new Contract for Sale can be sent to the Law Society's Property Law Committee via our Committee Administrator on committee@actlawsociety.asn.au.