Areas we serve / Frankston City / Carrum Downs
Lawyers and solicitors for Carrum Downs
Industrial leases, contracts and unpaid invoices for local businesses, homes, wills and separation for Carrum Downs and Sandhurst clients, from our Frankston office under 15 minutes away.
What we do for Carrum Downs clients
Choose what you need help with. Each one opens the detail further down this page.
Legal services for Carrum Downs clients
Carrum Downs has Frankston City’s largest industrial precinct, about 262 hectares where EastLink meets Peninsula Link, with manufacturers, trades and suppliers alongside family homes and, next door, the newer streets of Sandhurst.
We act for businesses and tradespeople with leases, contracts and unpaid invoices, and for families buying homes, making wills or separating. Radek Dajer, our principal solicitor, acts personally on each matter, in English or in Polish, and we meet at our Frankston office or by video.
Local note
Frankston City Council has a customer service desk at Carrum Downs Library, 203 Lyrebird Drive, for rates, permits and other enquiries.
Business, property and family matters in Carrum Downs
Choose a topic to see what it involves and how we help.
Leases of factories, warehouses and workshops, for landlords and tenants.
- Retail or not: the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic) covers many shops and service businesses. Offices, warehouses and factories are often outside it, and then the lease itself governs.
- Outgoings and land tax: under a non-retail lease, whether you pay land tax and how your share of outgoings is calculated depends on the lease. We review the lease and explain these terms before you sign.
- Options: under a non-retail lease, a missed option deadline can cost you the option.
- Make-good: the obligation to return the premises to a defined condition varies widely between leases, and the cost can be substantial.
Terms of trade, supply and service contracts, and getting paid.
- Terms of trade: credit terms, late payment interest, personal guarantors and retention of title clauses, which generally need registering on the Personal Property Securities Register.
- Unfair contract terms: since 9 November 2023 it has been unlawful to propose or rely on an unfair term in a standard form contract with a consumer or small business.
- Subcontractors and suppliers: the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2002 (Vic) gives a right to progress payments, with fast adjudication when payment is disputed.
- Unpaid invoices: start with a clear letter of demand. The Magistrates’ Court hears claims up to $100,000, and VCAT hears disputes about goods and services.
Contract and section 32 review and settlement for homes and land in Carrum Downs, Sandhurst and Skye.
- Before you sign: we check the contract, the section 32 statement and the planning controls on the land, including any overlay, and suggest changes while you can still negotiate.
- First home buyers: pay no land transfer duty on homes up to $600,000 and reduced duty up to $750,000. A $10,000 first home owner grant may apply to a new home valued at $750,000 or less.
- River Red Gums: a landscape overlay over parts of Carrum Downs, Sandhurst and Skye protects mature River Red Gums, and a permit is needed to remove, destroy, prune or lop native trees.
Wills for young families, and separation, property settlement and parenting arrangements.
- Wills: executors, gifts, guardians for young children and testamentary trusts, including for blended families.
- Superannuation: usually not covered by your will unless you have a valid binding death benefit nomination.
- Separation and divorce: are separate legal steps under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth). You do not need to be divorced to settle property or parenting arrangements, and a divorce does not settle them for you.
- Parenting: before applying for parenting orders you generally need a certificate from a family dispute resolution practitioner, unless an exception applies, such as family violence, child abuse or urgency.
Owed money on a job?
Subcontractors and suppliers under a construction contract can serve a payment claim under the Security of Payment Act. Deadlines are short and counted in business days, so act as soon as a payment is late.
Unpaid invoices
Recovering a debt, step by step
The early steps cost less, and each one gives the debtor another chance to pay. At every stage we weigh the likely costs against the amount you are owed.
01
Letter of demand
We state the amount, how it arises and a reasonable deadline. If the debtor offers to pay by instalments, we record the arrangement in writing.
02
Choosing where to sue
The Magistrates’ Court hears claims up to $100,000; larger claims go to the County or Supreme Court. VCAT hears disputes about goods and services.
03
Default judgment
In the Magistrates’ Court, if no defence is filed within 21 days after the claim is served, we can apply for judgment without a hearing.
04
Defended claims
Disputed claims under $10,000 are generally referred to arbitration. Larger claims may go to a pre-hearing conference or mediation first. We act for you at each stage.
05
Enforcement
If the debtor still does not pay, the options include an oral examination, a warrant to seize property, attachment of earnings and instalment orders.
How we work
Visit us from Carrum Downs
435 Nepean Highway, Frankston VIC 3199
Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm, by appointment
From Carrum Downs
Usually under 15 minutes by car.
By bus
Routes 832 and 833 run from Carrum Downs to Frankston station, a short walk from our office.
Parking
Wilson Parking at 453 Nepean Highway, street parking on the Nepean Highway, and the car parks at McDonald’s across the road and at Dan Murphy’s.
Common questions
Can’t see your question? Call 1800 776 529 or send us a message.
Often not. The Act covers premises used wholly or mainly for the retail sale or hire of goods or the retail provision of services. Factories, warehouses and workshops are often outside it, and then the lease itself governs. Whether it applies is a question of fact and law.
Start with a clear letter of demand setting out the amount, how it arises and a deadline. If that fails, we can issue a claim in the Magistrates’ Court or at VCAT, depending on the debt. Most claims for a debt under a contract must be started within six years of the date payment fell due.
Check that the Security of Payment Act applies, then serve a payment claim that meets its requirements. If no payment schedule arrives in time, or it schedules less than you claimed, you may be able to apply for adjudication or recover the amount in court. Get advice as soon as a payment is late.
Often, yes. A landscape overlay over parts of Carrum Downs, Sandhurst and Skye protects mature River Red Gums, and a permit is needed to remove, destroy, prune or lop native trees. If the overlay does not apply, a Frankston City tree permit may be needed instead. Check before any work starts. We can check the controls on your land for you.
Yes, review it promptly. Separation alone does not revoke your will or a gift to your former partner. Divorce revokes gifts to a former spouse and their appointment as executor, but only once the divorce takes effect. Check your superannuation nominations too.
Yes. Radek Dajer speaks Polish and can take your instructions and explain your documents in Polish. See our Polish-language page.
Business and family insights
The Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic) gives retail tenants in Victoria important protections. Learn about disclosure statements, minimum lease terms, rent reviews, and how to resolve disputes at VCAT.
Separation is a difficult time. Understanding your legal rights early can help you make better decisions about property, children, and your financial future.
When a debtor fails to pay, knowing the correct legal steps can mean the difference between recovering your money and writing off the debt entirely.
Talk to us about your Carrum Downs matter
Tell us briefly what has happened or what you are planning. We reply to every enquiry within one business day, by phone, email or text, whichever you prefer.
What happens next
- Send the form.
- We reply within one business day.
- We arrange a time to talk, or ask for any information or documents we need first.
Prefer to talk? Call 1800 776 529, Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm.