Construction Law

9 articles

Showing 1–8 of 8

Start here

Delivery of a new-build apartment: 4 milestones and pitfalls

Delivery is the pivotal moment at which a building site becomes a building: risk transfers, the warranty period starts and your liability claims take shape. This guide sets out the four delivery moments in an apartment building — provisional and final, private and common — with their legal consequences, pitfalls and the protection you enjoy as a buyer and as an Association of Co-owners.

Read the full guide

All articles

Court-appointed administrator in a new-build co-ownership conflict: when and how?

Court-appointed administrators are typically associated with neglected older buildings, but the same figure can also unblock a brand-new development. When a conflict between buyers, developer and managing agent around the provisional acceptance escalates and no one is still perceived as neutral, a court-appointed administrator can offer a way out. Discover when appointing one is appropriate, how they differ from a mediator, and why they are best placed alongside the managing agent.

18 September 2026

Property developer bankruptcy: what happens to your apartment?

A property developer in financial difficulty is a nightmare for buyers: the construction site grinds to a halt and the apartment remains unfinished. Yet you are not without rights. From a struggling developer, through judicial reorganisation, to an actual bankruptcy with the completion guarantee under the Breyne Act — discover the scenarios and what you can do yourself by organising the co-owners' association early.

31 August 2026

Minor hidden defects after acceptance: time limits & strategy

Acceptance does not close the door: defects that were not visible at the time may still emerge afterwards. Liability for minor hidden defects offers a ten-year warranty, with a reasonable response period that — crucially — only starts running when you could actually detect the defect. Discover what a minor hidden defect is and why you are often less late than you think.

16 August 2026

Exoneration clauses by property developers: why they are usually null and void

Property developers sometimes try to limit their liability to just one year after provisional acceptance. Such an exoneration clause hollows out your protection and is, as a rule, null and void — on three independent grounds: the non-reducible ten-year liability, consumer protection, and the mandatory two-stage acceptance. Find out why the clause does not take away your rights.

26 July 2026

The Owners' Association fails to act on construction defects: what can the owner do?

You have identified a construction defect, but the Owners' Association refuses to act: the upstairs neighbours notice nothing and refuse to contribute. Even so, you are not powerless. From building a case file and litigating for your own share to compelling the inactive Association to carry out the works — if necessary subject to a penalty payment — discover what the case law allows.

11 July 2026

Circumventing the Breyne Act: why avoidance structures rarely hold up

The Breyne Act is a mandatory protective regime for anyone buying a home off-plan. Precisely because it is strict, some construction professionals try to escape it: split contracts, individual construction agreements, the co-owners' association as principal. Discover the best-known avoidance structures and why the courts see through them to the true nature of the transaction.

18 June 2026

Common charges in new-build: from when do you pay?

During the construction phase, developers sometimes pass on site costs to the co-owners' association (VME): utility consumption during the works, connections, insurance. But from what point do these costs really fall on the co-owners' shoulders? The Court of Cassation's judgment of 2 September 2021 fixes the reference point and gives the VME a powerful tool to reject unjustified site costs.

28 May 2026

The four acceptance milestones in an apartment building

Not one or two, but four acceptances: provisional and final, private and common. Confusing them often blocks the entire file at the general meeting. Discover which four moments exist, why the order is fixed by law, and why that distinction protects rather than threatens you as a buyer.

13 May 2026

Most recent

Court-appointed administrator in a new-build co-ownership conflict: when and how?

Need legal advice?

Do you have a question about construction law? Contact Reius Lawyers without obligation.

Back to all themes