Court tells leaky-home developers to cough up

The courts are beginning to nail developers personally for the multi-billion-dollar rotting-homes crisis. Landmark rulings have been made against the chiefs of two big Auckland projects.

Decisions from the High Court at Auckland have held developers financially accountable, a move hailed as extremely significant by lawyer Matt Josephson of leaky-building specialists Grimshaw & Co.

"The big news is that developers are being held liable despite the fact that they used a company. The two cases are fact-specific but it's got to be good news for homeowners."

Developers' personal assets, such as their houses, were no longer automatically protected and could be used in claims for settlement in big disputes, he said.

In the first case, Justice Paul Heath ruled that prominent developer Greg Nielsen must pay $1,199,389 for creating poorly built leaky townhouses at 3 Laxon Tce, Newmarket.

Mr Nielsen, who sought legal aid but ended up representing himself, has been involved in many Auckland leaky-housing complexes.

To read the full NZ Herald article click here

Posted: 27 Jan 2009

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