Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Building Act 1993 - SECT 3

Definitions

3. Definitions



(1) In this Act-

appointed day in relation to a class or category of building practitioners,
means a day appointed for that class or category under section 6;

adjoining occupier means an occupier of an adjoining property;

adjoining owner means the owner of an adjoining property;

adjoining property means land (including any street, highway, lane, footway,
square, alley and right of way) which is so situated in relation to the site
on which building work is to be carried out as to be at risk of significant
damage from the building work;

approved auditor means a person holding a current certificate issued under
section 75GB;

building includes structure, temporary building, temporary structure and any
part of a building or structure;

Building Advisory Council means the Building Advisory Council under Part 12;

Building Appeals Board means the Building Appeals Board under Part 10;

Building Code of Australia means the Building Code of Australia published by
the Australian Building Codes Board-

   (a)  as amended or remade from time to time; and

   (b)  as amended by the Victoria Appendix to that Code published by that
        Board as that Appendix is amended or remade from time to time;

Building Practitioners Board means the Building Practitioners Board under
Part 11;

building practitioner means-

   (a)  a building surveyor; or

   (b)  a building inspector; or

   (c)  a quantity surveyor; or

   (d)  an engineer engaged in the building industry; or

   (e)  a draftsperson who carries on a business of preparing plans for
        building work or preparing documentation relating to permits or permit
        applications; or

   (f)  a builder including a domestic builder; or

   (g)  a person who erects or supervises the erection of prescribed temporary
        structures; or

   (h)  a person responsible for a building project or any stage of a building
        project and who belongs to a class or category of people prescribed to
        be building practitioners- but does not include-

   (i)  an architect; or

   (j)  a person (other than a domestic builder) who does not carry on the
        business of building1; or

* * * * *

Building Regulations Advisory Committee means the Building Regulations
Advisory Committee under Part 12;

building regulations means regulations made under Part 2;

building work means work for or in connection with the construction,
demolition or removal of a building;

business day means a day that is not-

   (a)  a Saturday or Sunday; or

   (b)  a day that is wholly or partly observed as a public holiday throughout
        Victoria; certificate of consent means a certificate of consent under
        Division 3A of Part 3;

chief officer means-

   (a)  in relation to the metropolitan fire district under the
        Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958, the Chief Officer of the
        Metropolitan Fire and Emergency Services; and

   (b)  in relation to any building or land outside the metropolitan fire
        district, the Chief Officer of the Country Fire Authority under the
        Country Fire Authority Act 1958;

Commission means the Building Commission under Part 12;

Commissioner means the Commissioner of the Building Commission under Part 12;



conduct, in relation to a public entertainment, means to have a direct
pecuniary interest in the proceeds or profits of the entertainment;

construct, in relation to a building, includes-

   (a)  build, re-build, erect or re-erect the building; and

   (b)  repair the building; and

   (c)  make alterations to the building; and

   (d)  enlarge or extend the building; and

   (e)  place or relocate the building on land;

cooling tower has the meaning set out in section 75A;

cooling tower system has the meaning set out in section 75AB;



council means a council within the meaning of the Local Government Act 19892;

decision, in relation to a matter in respect of which an appeal can be made to
the Building Appeals Board, includes failure to decide;

decision-maker, in relation to a matter in respect of which an appeal can be
made to the Building Appeals Board, means the person or body whose decision
may be the subject of that appeal;

domestic builder means a builder within the meaning of the
Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995;





domestic building work has the same meaning as it has in the
Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995;





function includes power, authority and duty; insured architect means an
architect who is registered under the Architects Act 1991 and who is covered
by the required insurance under that Act; insurer includes the Victorian
Managed Insurance Authority established by the
Victorian Managed Insurance Authority Act 1996;



Legionella means bacteria belonging to the genus Legionella;



lot, in relation to land, means a piece of land that can, at the relevant
time, be disposed of separately;

major domestic building contract has the same meaning as it has in the
Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995;





mandatory notification stage means a prescribed stage of building work;

municipal building surveyor means a person for the time being appointed,
employed or nominated by a council as its municipal building surveyor for the
purposes of this Act3;

owner-

   (a)  in relation to land which has been alienated in fee by the Crown and
        is under the operation of the Transfer of Land Act 1958, (other than
        land in an identified folio under that Act) means the person who is
        registered or entitled to be registered as proprietor, or the persons
        who are registered or entitled to be registered as proprietors, of an
        estate in fee simple in the land; and

   (b)  in relation to land which has been alienated in fee by the Crown and
        is land in an identified folio under the Transfer of Land Act 1958 or
        land not under the operation of the Transfer of Land Act 1958, means
        the person who is the owner, or the persons who are the owners, of the
        fee or equity of redemption; and

   (c)  in relation to Crown land reserved under the
        Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978 and managed or controlled by a
        committee of management, means the Minister administering that Act;
        and

   (d)  in relation to any other Crown land, means the Minister or public
        authority that manages or controls the land;

owner in relation to a building, means the owner of the land on which a
building is situated4;

permit means building permit or occupancy permit;

place of public entertainment means-

   (a)  a prescribed building or building in a prescribed class of buildings
        which is used or intended to be used for the purpose of providing
        public entertainment; or

   (b)  a prescribed place or place in a prescribed class of places-

   (i)  which is enclosed or substantially enclosed; or

   (ii) to which admission can be gained by payment of money or the giving of
        other consideration-
and which is used or intended to be used for the purpose of providing public
entertainment;

prescribed temporary structure includes a temporary structure in a prescribed
class of temporary structures;

private building surveyor means a building surveyor registered under Part 11
other than-

   (a)  a municipal building surveyor; or

   (b)  an officer or employee of the Crown or a public authority; or

   (c)  a building surveyor authorised under section 191, 192 or 221- in his
        or her capacity as such a municipal building surveyor, officer,
        employee or authorised building surveyor;

proceeding, in relation to a proceeding of the Building Appeals Board, means-

   (a)  an appeal to that Board under Divisions 1 and 2 of Part 10; or

   (b)  a matter referred to that Board under Division 3 of that Part; or

   (c)  an application to that Board under Division 4 of that Part; or

   (d)  any other matter within that Board's jurisdiction that, by the Act or
        regulation conferring the jurisdiction, is declared to be a
        proceeding;

protection work means-

   (a)  permanent or temporary work of-

   (i)  underpinning, including the provision of vertical support, lateral
        support, protection against variation in earth pressures, provision of
        ground anchors and other support for adjoining property; or

   (ii) shoring up of adjoining property; or

   (iii) overhead protection for adjoining property; or

   (iv) other work designed to maintain the stability of adjoining property or
        to protect adjoining property from damage from building work; or

   (b)  any work or use of equipment necessary for the provision, maintenance
        and removal of work referred to in paragraph (a)- whether or not the
        work or equipment is carried out or used on, over, under or in the air
        space above the land on which the building work is or is to be carried
        out or the adjoining property;

public authority means a body established for a public purpose by or under an
Act and includes a council;

public entertainment means an entertainment or meeting to which admission may
ordinarily be gained by members of the public;

registered building practitioner means a building practitioner registered
under Part 11;

relevant building surveyor-

   (a)  in relation to an application to, or permit, approval, inspection,
        direction, notice or order issued or given by, a municipal building
        surveyor, means the municipal building surveyor; and

   (b)  in relation to an application to, or permit, approval, inspection,
        direction, notice or order issued or given by, a private building
        surveyor, means the private building surveyor; and

   (c)  in relation to the carrying out by the Commission of the functions of
        a municipal building surveyor or a function specified in section
        199(5), means the Commission; and

   (d)  in relation to the carrying out by a building surveyor authorised
        under section 191, 192 or 221 of the functions of a municipal building
        surveyor, means the authorised building surveyor;

relevant council, in relation to a building or land, means the council of the
municipal district in which the building or land is situated;

reporting authority means a body or person (other than a municipal building
surveyor or private building surveyor to whom an application is made) that is
required by this Act or the regulations or by any other Act or regulations to
report on or consent to an application for a permit; required insurance means
the insurance required by order under section 135 and, in the case of
insurance to which section 137AA applies, complying with section 137AA;



risk management plan has the meaning set out in section 75E;



risk management plan audit has the meaning set out in section 75F;



temporary structure includes-

   (a)  a booth, tent, marquee or other temporary enclosure, whether or not a
        part of the booth, tent, marquee or enclosure is permanent; or

   (b)  a seating structure whether enclosed or not, including a mobile
        seating structure.

(2) In Part 7 a reference to the owner is a reference to the owner of land on
which building work is proposed to be or is carried out.