The Contracts and Commercial Law Act 2017 – what does it mean for you?

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

The Contracts and Commercial Law Act 2017 (CCLA) can be thought of as the latest model Ute to come out of the legislative dealership – a fresh, remastered vehicle for modern day use.

What is the Contracts and Commercial Law Act 2017?

The CCLA, which came into effect on 1 September 2017, revokes and consolidates eleven commercial statutes. The result is one singular, updated piece of legislation.

The eleven statutes which this affects are:

  • Carriage of Goods Act 1979
  • Contracts (Privity) Act 1982
  • Contractual Mistakes Act 1977
  • Contractual Remedies Act 1979
  • Electronic Transactions Act 2002
  • Frustrated Contracts Act 1944
  • Illegal Contracts Act 1970
  • Mercantile Law Act 1908
  • Minor’s Contract Act 1960
  • Sale of Goods Act 1908
  • Sale of Goods (United Nations Convention) Act 1994.

While the effect of the existing legislation remains largely unchanged, there are a few minor adjustments that have been made to clarify Parliament’s intent or to reconcile inconsistencies.

Schedule 2 of the Act outlines the minor amendments which have been made, along with an explanation of the nature of the intended amendment.

How does the CCLA affect contracts entered into before or after 1 September 2017?

While the new updated language of the CCLA will apply to contracts entered into before 1 September 2017, the minor changes that have been made will not. Simply put, the law as stated in the relevant original Act will apply.

The CCLA will apply in full to any contract entered into after 1 September 2017.

Next steps

The introduction of the CCLA provides a great opportunity for you to refresh and review any standard contracts, and documents which you may use to ensure you are keeping up-to-date with current legislative changes. If you have any questions, or would like any guidance in updating your contracts in light of these changes, our business team are happy to assist you through the process.

Our thanks to Chris Taylor for writing this article.