A builder with 18 years experience has been fined $30,000 for carrying out internal building work within Brimbank without a building permit.
Brimbank council successfully prosecuted the company for being in violation of Section 16 (1) of the Building Act 1993, which legislates that most building work is subject to a permit.
The offending company pleaded guilty at the Sunshine Magistrates’ Court earlier this month and was forced to pay the council’s full legal charges of more than $11,000.
Magistrate Martin Grinberg rejected submissions made in mitigation that the alterations were of a ‘minor’ nature and that the accused, who is a registered builder, could have misunderstood the process for a building permit application.
Mr Grinberg deemed that the offending was not opportunistic but was an intentionally thought-out course of conduct, which has wider implications in terms of community safety and consistency in building standards.
The violation was first detected by council officers late last year.
The Building Act 1993 prescribes a penalty of over $70,000 for an individual and over $360,000 in the case of a body corporate for anyone carrying out work without a permit.
