Some people hold the view that a statement that accords with s. 52 of the Estate Agents Act 1980 (Vic) will be sufficient to satisfy s. 60(1)(d) of the RLA (section 60(1) is extracted in my earlier post today).
However:
- the RLA does not define a “business record”;
- a s. 52 statement is a form completed by the vendor of a business and it is not clear that this would be a business record for the purposes of s. 60(1)(d); and
- in any event, s. 52 statements allow for data in the preceding two years, not three as required by s. 60(1)(d) (although this could be remedied by amending the form).
Consequently, solicitors should think twice before advising their clients that completing a s 52 statement will satisfy s 60(1)(d).
