On 5 June 2025, Matthew Francke spoke with Tony Moclair (3AW Melbourne) about present issues with Tree related disputes in Victoria. https://omny.fm/shows/3aw-afternoons/tony-moclair-chats-with-matthew-francke-director-of-francke-lawyers#description
Author: Matthew Francke
I am an Australian lawyer practising in property and building related matters since 2002.
2018 Building Appeals Board Decisions
Austlii has commenced publishing selected Building Appeals Board decisions. They can be accessed on the link below. Austlii - Building Appeals Board To be fair, selected decisions were previously published on the Board's website, however this was limited to modification applications. The decisions loaded onto Austlii since April seem to have a wider focus, which … Continue reading 2018 Building Appeals Board Decisions
What is Protection Work under the Building Act 1993?
For the uninitiated, being served with a Form 3 "Protection Work Notice" can be confusing. We have endeavoured to provide a short explanation of what "Protection work" actually is, and the process involved. Building Permit If a building permit is required, then before it is granted, one of the things that the Relevant Building Surveyor … Continue reading What is Protection Work under the Building Act 1993?
Neighbourhood Tree Disputes
Written submissions to the VLRC inquiry into neighbourhood tree disputes closed on 28 February 2018. Practitioners in this area will await the outcome of the inquiry with bated breath. In the interim, the consultation paper prepared by the Commission contains an impressive recap of the present law, although it will be unsatisfying for the average … Continue reading Neighbourhood Tree Disputes
‘Report and consent’ under the Building Regulations – what it is, and what it isn’t
This article was originally published in August 2017 on Lexology here.
Trespass By Tower Crane
This article was originally published in July 2017 on Lexology here. The proceeding was also the subject of a couple of articles by Clay Lucas at The Age, here and here.
When Mistakes Happen
This article concerns a Protection Work dispute under the Building Act 1993 (Vic), where a builder had trespassed onto an neighbouring property and cut back the eaves of the house, under a misapprehension that this was allowed under the Protection Work regime. The article was originally published in February 2017 on Lexology here.
Why You Should Want A Lawyer (and Not A Robot)
This article was originally published in December 2016 on Lexology here. Some of the points were subsequently discussed in an interesting and thought provoking article by Sterling Milller titled "The Future of Artificial Intelligence".