Can a Work Order, which is made under a Deed of Standing Offer, continue on after the Deed has expired?
What do you do with a work order that sits under a deed when that deed of agreement has expired? Well, stick around then I’ll tell you.
Hi, it’s Simon here from the Contract Company. Contracts, that’s what we do all day every day and sometimes overnight. Lucky us. Right out.
So you have a situation when you’re dealing with Commonwealth departments. They do this a lot, where they will put in place a deed of standing offer. This is a document that everyone signs up to where they agree to provide services to the Commonwealth in the future.
And where you want to actually provide the services, you sign up to a work order. So you have the deed that everyone on the panel signs. And then where the Commonwealth decides to give you work, they’ll issue you a work order.
Now, what do you do if the deed itself has ended or expired just from the passage of time? Basically it is an expired deed but you want the work order to continue? Or in fact you want to add more services to the work order and the deed’s already dead?
The Deed’s Dead, What Happens to the Work Order
Well, the first thing you need to do is check the deed. Most deeds, in fact nearly all of them will have a clause in there that basically says the work order of a dead deed can exist.
The contract, any work order or contract that sits under the deed can exist even if the deed is dead. This is as long as the work order is signed before the deed dies.
So let’s say you have a deed and it’s meant to end 30 June, as long as on the 29th of June or earlier in time you sign a work order. That work order could be even for two years.
On the 30th, the deed dies but because you signed the work order before the deed dies. Then that work order can live for its life. Now, the issue you then get with some departments is what they want to try and do is add or vary the services in that work order.
Variations in the Work Order
And in my view, as long as you do that by way of a written variation, and the date itself will set out how work orders have to be varied. As long as you do that but you don’t vary the term of the work order then I think you’re going to be fine. Because on the day, the 29th of June in my example, on the day that the work order is signed it has a set length.
So you could then agree to add additional services to that work order throughout the term. I was just about to say you know you can’t extend the term. But as long as you extend the term before the work order expires you should be fine.
So in other words, you don’t want there to be any gap in the life of the work order because the deed is already dead. So the deed dies here, the work order runs from just before it into the future.
As long as you vary the work order before it comes to an end and including extending its term, then you should be fine.
But if that ends say on 1 July and on the 3rd of July you try and extend it, you won’t be able to because the deed’s dead and it’s dead.
Anyway, it’s a long-winded way of saying probably don’t deal with the Commonwealth it’s too hard. Only joking. There’s plenty of options with deeds especially with the work orders that sit under the deed.
So if you have any questions or queries about this video or in general please don’t hesitate to contact me at simon@contractcompany.com.au or 1800355455. Thanks very much.
