Check whether your notice satisfied the required method before relying on the consequence you intended.
Corporate Recovery Partners
01 / 06
The email exists, but receipt is disputed
A subcontractor emails a notice about an unpaid account to the project manager. Weeks later, the builder says notices had to go to a nominated office address. The subcontractor has a sent message but is unsure whether it triggered any contractual right. Sending another copy may help communication without fixing the earlier legal issue.
Distinguish an ordinary reminder from a contractual notice, statutory document or court document. Each can have different requirements and consequences.
Keep the actual document and its attachments. A description such as ‘the warning email’ is not enough for an adviser to assess what was communicated.
Review the contract’s notice clause, named recipient, address and permitted delivery method. Business.gov.au recommends clear written contract terms covering responsibilities and dispute handling.
If legislation or court rules govern the notice, seek advice on those exact requirements. Do not assume a delivery method accepted for invoices is valid for every formal document.
Save the original email with attachments, delivery records, returned mail and any response referring to the notice. Record changes of address that were communicated to you.
A screenshot of a sent folder is only one piece of evidence. Avoid treating it as a universal answer to receipt, service or validity.
Ask an adviser whether a fresh notice is appropriate, where to send it and how it affects any timing or next step. Keep the earlier version intact.
Confirm practical receipt through an authorised contact where appropriate. Do not alter dates or state that a replacement was sent earlier than it actually was. Record whether the recipient acknowledged the substance of the notice, while leaving the legal significance of that acknowledgement to the adviser.
