Leaky Homes: Roberts v. Jules Consultancy Ltd

Property manager Jules Consultancy Ltd breached the Fair Trading Act when failing to make full disclosure to potential purchaser Michael Roberts about weathertightness of a Sirocco apartment in central Wellington.  In addition, Jules Leloir, as owner-operator of Jules Consultancy, was held personally liable  

Completed in 1999, the eleven storey Sirocco apartments showed signs of water ingress as early as 2003.  Ms Leloir took over as body corporate manager in 2007, trading through her company Jules Consultancy Ltd.

The High Court was told Mr Roberts agreed in 2014 to buy a Sirocco apartment for $397,000.  His contract was conditional on finance and a satisfactory council LIM report.  Lawyers followed up on a LIM notation which disclosed potential weathertightness issues at Sirocco, recommending potential purchasers contact Sirocco’s body corporate. Mr Roberts said Ms Leloir, when contacted by his lawyer, said weathertightness issues related only to walkways and this had been rectified.  Mr Roberts’ purchase was declared unconditional.  In the previous twelve months, the body corporate had been discussing ongoing problems of water ingress into a number of apartments. This was not disclosed to Mr Roberts. A subsequent building report recommended a complete re-clad for Sirocco.

Justice Thomas ruled both Jules Consultancy Ltd and Ms Leloir were in breach of the Fair Trading Act.  When answering, Ms Leloir had information that would lead a reasonable person to believe Sirocco suffered from weathertightness problems extending beyond walkways, Her Honour said.  A partial answer was misleading.

The High Court was asked to rule on liability only. Damages were left for later calculation. Mr Roberts says he is potentially out of pocket $468,000 for repair and re-cladding costs.
Roberts v. Jules Consultancy Ltd – High Court (25.03.19)

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