BSB60220 Advanced Diploma of Conveyancing Case Study Assignment Questions 2025

Assessment Instructions

This assessment consists of two parts:

Part A – Short Answer Questions

Part B – Case Study – Memorandum of Advice

For this assessment, you will need to access the following resources from Canvas to answer the questions:

• Resources relevant to sections of the Sale of Land Act and the general conditions of the standard REIV/LIV contract of sale (2024 version). Available on CANVAS.
• Case citations available on CANVAS
• The following abbreviations are used in the resources and may be used in the questions and your written answers:

Leakes Road Property Development Pty Ltd v Brasse (2024) VSCA 34    Lvb

McHutchinson v Asli & Moneywest (2017) VSC 258                                    Mvam

Putt v Perfect Builders P/L (2013) VSC 442                                                    Pvpb

Patmore & Anor v Hamilton (2014) VSC 275                                                Pvh

GLP Batesford Holdings Pty Ltd v 68 Bridge Road Land Pty Ltd (2022) VSC 614 GBv68 Jin Yi Construction Pty Ltd v Romeciti Eastwood Pty Ltd (2022) NSWSC 56 JYvRE

Australian Consumer Law and Fair Trading Act 2012

(also known as Australian Consumer Law)                                                  ACL

Sale of Land Act 1962                                                                                        SLA

Property Law Act 1958                                                                                    PLA

Please note that for Part B, students will need to refer to and apply the relevant case law to support their answers. However, avoid quoting sections from the judgments and legislation. Students must ensure they use their own words to demonstrate they understand the meaning of the law.

All answers in Part A (short answer questions) should be approximate. 200 words (no more than half a page each, font 11).

In Part B, you will need to provide your answers in the form of a draft memo. Refer to the memo template in Appendix 1 or design your professional template.

Use the word count suggestions in each question in Part B to guide the level of detail required in the response. Avoid restating sections of the legislation and quotes from the judgments. The questions do not require you to summarise all the facts and the decisions. Use your own words to demonstrate you understand the case or a section of the legislation.

Part A – Short Answer Questions

Question 1

Refer to the case Leakes Road Property Development Pty Ltd v Brasse to answer this question.

Why was the vendor entitled to damages?

Question 2

Refer to the case McHutchinson v Asli & Moneywest to answer this question.

Why was the purchaser entitled to rescind the contract? What argument did the vendor make in response to the purchaser’s

action? Refer to the relevant subsections of s32 Sale of Land Act.

Question 3

Refer to the case Jin Yi Construction Pty Ltd v Romeciti Eastwood Pty Ltd to answer this question.

Why did the purchaser successfully end the contract? Explain the decision about the contract terms and common law misdescription rules.

Question 4

• In the case of Putt v Perfect Builders P/L., the purchaser was unsuccessful in obtaining a loan to finance their

About this decision and the relevant terms of the contract, explain why the purchasers were not able to end the contract.

• Research and summarise the requirements of two financial institutions, National Australia Bank (NAB) and The Bendigo
  Bank, in applying for and creating a mortgage on behalf of the purchaser. Use the links below to assist, but do not cut and paste the information. Use your own words to summarise.

NAB: LMI Customer Fact Sheet

The Bendigo Bank: Bendigo Bank

Question 5

Refer to the case GLP Batesford Holdings Pty Ltd v 68 Bridge Road Land Pty Ltd to answer this question.

Why did the purchaser refuse to sign the vendor’s request for early release of the deposit? Explain how the judge interpreted the contract terms in comparison to the requirements of s. 27 of the Sale of Land Act.

Question 6

Concerning the case of Patmore v Hamilton:

• How was the relevant wording of (then) GC 24 (now GC 31) of the contract of sale interpreted?
• What lessons and duties did the court identify for conveyancing practitioners to note when applying the GC 31 process?

Part B – Case Study, Memorandum and Report

Ensure you present your memos in Part B professionally using the Writing a Memorandum links provided on the Canvas Assignment link. Assume the parties have signed the standard copyright LIV/REIV/AIC 2024 version of the Contract for the Sale of Land.

You are to assume the role of Lily the Conveyancing Clerk working at Competent Conveyancing Company Ltd, where Horace Holemeal is the licensed conveyancer. Horace has asked you to handle a client file for purchasers Percy and Daryl.

Examine the facts and advise Lily as instructed below:

Percy and Daryl have a committed relationship and live in Byron Bay, where they can relax and chill in between their creative work assignments. They have three beautiful dogs, spoodles, Rex, Rose and Dot. They are visiting Melbourne for one of Daryl’s concerts and are very excited about the cultural scene, which is a great contrast to the relaxed life in Byron. They decide to invest in a beautiful Victorian-style home in Fitzroy, which will be perfect once renovated.

Percy and Daryl employ Competent Conveyancing Company Ltd to complete the transaction. Lily is the conveyancing clerk at Competent Conveyancing Company Ltd, who examines the contract documents, a week after signing by both parties. The vendor is Parvati Pawar as executor of her mother’s estate. The property is located in the City of Darebin council.

Attached to the vendor’s statement is a copy of the title register statement. The title shows the registered proprietor to be Sita Pawar, and the land is encumbered by a registered mortgage to the Easy Money Bank, as well as a restrictive covenant. The real estate agent told Lily on the phone that Sita died last year, and her children are selling the property.

The covenant imposes various restrictions on the land, including a prohibition on building more than one dwelling on the land. Percy and Daryl have instructed that they intend to add a music and drama studio separated from the house at the rear of the property. The studio will also have an en-suite bedroom and kitchen facilities for visiting parents. They also plan a modern architect-designed sustainable extension to the house.

The vendor’s statement discloses that the zone is Neighbourhood Residential with an Environmental and Landscape overlay. It does not have any explanation of why Parvati is the vendor when Sita is the registered proprietor. All the other information in the vendor’s statement complies with the s32 Sale of Land Act.

Lily searches the zone and overlay and discovers that owners of land in this zone must not remove any vegetation, trees or build fences without a permit. The council website also notes that their property is subject to a proposed interim Heritage Overlay, which may be permanent in the future and affect the house and their modern extension and renovation plans. After reporting all this information to her clients, Percy and Daryl decide that they do not want to proceed because of all the possible permit delays and their renovation plans could be impossible. They ask Lily to end the contract and organise the return of their deposit.

Question 1

As the conveyancing clerk handling the file at Competent Conveyancing Company Ltd, write a detailed analytical memo for your manager, Horace, setting out all the relevant legal issues and defences concerning:

• Whether Percy and Daryl can end the contract according to the 32 SLA. Identify any professional indemnity issues for Horace.
• Identify the rescission process and contractual steps required to end the contract according to the general conditions of the contract of sale.

Question 2

Competent Conveyancing Company Ltd policies and procedures state that any changes to legislative and regulatory requirements must be communicated clearly to all staff members in a timely manner.

After reading the case study memo you wrote, your manager, Horace, was very impressed and has asked you to write a company memo to all staff in Competent Conveyancing Company Ltd regarding recent changes that will impact the roles and responsibilities of many staff members.

In your memo, include the following information:

• Basic information on the processes that lead to changes in the Please briefly summarise here the process of a bill to law.
• Where to access reliable and authentic online source documents for amendments to legislation relevant to the provision of conveyancing services (with links provided to where you accessed this information).
• Two (2) examples of legislative changes that have implications for conveyancing practice, and consider legislation from the last three years that impacts conveyancing practice.

Question 3

Horace discusses with you the office policies and procedures currently in place at Competent Conveyancing Company Ltd. He asks you to perform some research and gather information on ways to better track and interpret changes to legislation and regulations affecting the practice operations. Based on your research, he also requests that you establish a process that can be used to maintain records of legislation and industry codes, in line with the practice’s newly established policies and procedures.

Draft a report for Horace in response to his request. You must include the following information:

• Examine software commonly used by legal and conveyancing firms to tracking legislative and regulatory changes and describe the process you would apply.
• The strategies, processes and procedures that will mitigate any consequences of such changes within the practice (refer to your examples in answers 2c above)
• Describe the person(s) responsible for ensuring the changes are communicated, implemented, monitored and recorded successfully.
• Outline the processes you will establish to maintain records, including legislation and codes of conduct