Areas we serve / South-east Melbourne / Moorabbin, Braeside and Dingley Village
Lawyers and solicitors for Moorabbin, Braeside and Dingley Village
Industrial and commercial leases, business contracts and unpaid invoices, green wedge land, property, wills and estates for Moorabbin, Braeside, Dingley Village, Heatherton, Clarinda and Clayton South clients, from our Frankston office about 20 to 30 minutes away.
How we help Moorabbin, Braeside and Dingley Village clients
Choose what you need help with. Each one opens the detail further down this page.
Legal services for Moorabbin, Braeside and Dingley Village clients
This is Kingston’s business heartland. The eastern side of Moorabbin has been industrial since the 1960s, Braeside has a large industrial precinct beside Braeside Park, and Moorabbin Airport, a general aviation airport since 1949, is on Commonwealth land governed by the Airports Act 1996 (Cth). Between them lies the Kingston Green Wedge, where former sand quarries and landfills are becoming a chain of parks from Karkarook Park in Heatherton to Braeside Park.
Dingley Village and Clarinda are established suburbs where many owners have paid off their homes, and the former Kingswood golf course in Dingley Village has been approved for a staged housing estate. We act for landlords and tenants of factories and warehouses, for businesses with contracts and unpaid invoices, for buyers and sellers, and for families with wills and estates. Radek Dajer, our principal solicitor, acts personally on each matter, in English or in Polish.
Local note
Kingston’s green wedge covers 2,067.5 hectares, roughly from Karkarook Park in the north to Braeside Park in the south, and the council’s plan notes the state’s clear direction that no change to the urban growth boundary will be considered.
Leases, business, property and estates in Moorabbin, Braeside and Dingley Village
Choose a topic to see what it involves and how we help.
Leases of factories, warehouses and offices in the Moorabbin, Braeside and Clayton South industrial areas, 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.
The contracts manufacturers, suppliers and trade businesses rely on, 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.
- 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.
- Statutory demands: a creditor owed a due and payable debt of at least $4,000 can serve a statutory demand on a company. The company has 21 days from service to pay or apply to court to set it aside, and the court cannot extend that time.
Land in the Kingston Green Wedge, around Heatherton, Dingley Village and Braeside, is controlled differently from suburban land.
- Green wedge: in the Green Wedge Zone a dwelling needs a permit, only one dwelling is allowed on each lot, and lots smaller than the minimum size (40 hectares unless the zone schedule sets another size) generally cannot be created. Some green wedge land is in other zones with different rules.
- Urban growth boundary: Kingston’s green wedge plan notes the state’s clear direction that no change to the urban growth boundary will be considered.
- Former quarries and landfills: sand was mined in the area from about 1900 to 1970, and more than 30 former mining holes in Kingston were used as landfill sites. Check the history of land before you buy or build near one.
- 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.
Homes in Dingley Village, Clarinda, Heatherton and Moorabbin, and lots in new estates sold before their titles issue.
- Cooling-off: for many private sales of residential property, you have 3 clear business days after signing to end the contract. There is none at a publicly advertised auction.
- Off-the-plan: the deposit is capped at 10% and held in trust until registration, and buyers have rights if the plan changes materially or is not registered in time.
- Sunset clauses: a developer cannot end a residential off-the-plan contract under a sunset clause just because the date has passed. It must give each buyer at least 28 days’ written notice with reasons and obtain their written consent, or apply to the Supreme Court.
- Selling: most sellers now need an Australian Taxation Office clearance certificate by settlement, whatever the price. Apply early, because it can take some weeks to issue.
Wills, powers of attorney and estates for long-term owners, and help when a parent can no longer manage.
- Wills: executors, gifts, guardians for young children and testamentary trusts, including for blended families.
- Enduring power of attorney: appoints someone to make financial or personal decisions for you, and continues if you lose capacity. Made under the Powers of Attorney Act 2014 (Vic).
- Executors: probate and administering the estate. Probate applications are filed online with the Supreme Court of Victoria.
- A parent who can no longer manage: if they made an enduring power of attorney, the attorney can act under it. If not, an application to VCAT for an administration or guardianship order may be needed. VCAT hears most of these in the Melbourne CBD, and some at a venue closer to home, such as Frankston.
Asked for a personal guarantee?
Commercial leases and supply agreements often ask a director to guarantee the company’s obligations personally. We explain what you are signing and negotiate limits where we can.
Estates in Dingley Village
Administering an estate, step by step
What an executor does, from finding the will to distributing the estate. We explain each step as it comes, in English or in Polish.
01
Is a grant needed?
We find the original will and check whether a grant is needed. Property owned as joint tenants passes to the survivor without one.
02
Apply for probate
The intended application is advertised online through the Supreme Court’s RedCrest-Probate system, then filed with affidavits and a statement of assets and liabilities.
03
Assets and debts
Once the grant is made, the executor identifies and collects the assets, pays funeral expenses and debts, and keeps proper records and accounts.
04
Tax and notices
Final tax returns are lodged. The executor can publish a notice under section 33 of the Trustee Act 1958 (Vic), giving creditors and claimants at least two months to claim.
05
Distribution
A distribution properly made more than 6 months after the grant is protected, provided the executor has had no notice of a family provision claim. We prepare the estate accounts and transfer or sell property.
How we work
Visit us from Moorabbin and Dingley Village
435 Nepean Highway, Frankston VIC 3199
Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm, by appointment
From Dingley Village and Braeside
About 20 to 25 minutes by car via the Mordialloc Freeway and the Mornington Peninsula Freeway.
From Moorabbin
About 25 to 30 minutes by car along the Nepean Highway, or by train from Moorabbin station 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.
In the Green Wedge Zone a dwelling needs a planning permit and only one is allowed on each lot, and other green wedge zones have their own rules. Check the zone and any overlays before you buy. We check these controls as part of reviewing the contract.
If they made an enduring power of attorney, the attorney can act under it. If not, and they have lost capacity, an application to VCAT for an administration or guardianship order may be needed. VCAT hears most guardianship matters in the Melbourne CBD, and some at a venue closer to home, such as Frankston, or by phone or video.
Our office is at 435 Nepean Highway, Frankston, about 20 to 30 minutes by car from Moorabbin, Braeside and Dingley Village. Much of the work can be done by phone, video and email, so you may only need to come in to sign documents.
Yes. Radek Dajer speaks Polish and can take your instructions and explain your documents in Polish. See our Polish-language page.
Leasing and business 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.
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.
Signing a commercial lease is one of the biggest financial commitments a business can make. A lawyer can identify risks before you are locked into a long-term obligation.
Talk to us about your Moorabbin, Braeside or Dingley Village 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.