Image courtesy of Cruzer - Does it hold your next building permit application?
Is this the future of building permit applications? Could a digital presentation of your building permit application be a “legal” document? We have 3d models using 3D drawing software? We can stamp pdf’s with an image of a stamp.
Is the legislation ready? Is it admissible as evidence? This ultimately would seem to be the key. In Victoria it’s the Evidence Act 1958 which is crucial. There is a whole section on business documents, with all sorts of exceptions and variations etc. It also says unless otherwise specified in an Act e.g. The Building Act 1993.
Regulation 302 of the Building Regulations 2006 mentions nothing about electronic documents. It just refers to documents. Section 32 of the Act says that a Council must keep all documents submitted in a “prescribed manner”. Regulation 321 is the key – it refers to records being kept for 10 years in their “original form”. So, if you submitted a permit application to BDC in digital form that would be the original form. OK, so far so good!
According to Johnathan Clough from the Monash University Law School in a presentation to the Public Records Office on the issue of “The Admissibility of Digital Evidence” section 3 of the Victorian Evidence Act 1958 says:
‘any disc tape sound track or other device in which sounds or other data (not being visual images) are embodied so as to be capable (with or without the aid of some other equipment) of being reproduced therefrom.’
In his paper Johnathan concludes: (more…)
